Stockholm Syndrome
by WeirdVision
Summary: Post The Host. New visitors arrive to the caves along with new dangers. R&R please.
1. Chapter 1

~ 1 ~

First, I heard the whispers. It was a group of people talking quietly only a few steps away, and I recognized them for what they were. If I wanted to concentrate hard enough I could figure out what they were saying. But I couldn't find the strength; my head felt hollow, almost the same as it did after an insertion. _It's too soon for an insertion_, part of me protested. Was it? Well, if I believed so, then it had to be true. I tended to have a strong intuition, and it was usually right.

_OK, let's see what happened. _Better take the bull by the horns and get over the worst part fast–it was what the Healers advised, anyway. I braced myself, metaphorically speaking, and started to flip through the memories. I was looking for the most recent ones, whether they were the Host's or mine. I noticed something strange. While I had no problem finding my memories or thoughts related to me, I found no trace of someone else. It felt like no one else had been in there, just me. _Great, they put me in a damaged host_, I thought, revolted and annoyed, _probably one that blew its brain out_. I shuddered at the image that passed through my head and I hurried to chase it away. So messy. I didn't have time to fix it, I had things to do. Whatever… somehow I was going to deal with it. And right now was the best time to start.

What body had they gotten me? I didn't remember choosing it like I did before so I must have had an accident or something, although I couldn't remember it either. Head trauma? Post traumatic stress? The Healer was going to tell me, no doubt. I hoped they had gotten the gender right at least; seeing a man PMSing would have been embarrassing even for the Souls.

It felt almost like my old body. I was pretty fond of my old body, and it had helped me during several years and tough times. It saddened me to lose it. Besides, it was still young and in its prime; it was a shame to waste a good Host. This new one felt a little less responsive, like it was recovering after a long sickness. It felt weak–yes, this was the word I was looking for. And I was _not _weak. See, I had learned this world's language well, and I wasn't ready to give up on this race that easily.

Letting out a small sigh, my eyelids fluttered and I opened my eyes. There were no lights on the ridiculously high ceiling, and the only source of light was coming from a desk aligned on the opposite wall. This room was darker than any healing facility I had ever been to. Even the walls were oddly shaped and had an unusual color. I spotted the Healer, not one that I was familiar with. He was tall and slender, talking with a group of people. One of them, a young girl, caught my eye. She was blonde with big gray eyes and angelic features. I took one look at her and gasped. Now I remembered.

The entire scene played in front of my eyes as if I were in a movie theater.

_The young blonde girl approached the cashier, pushing an overloaded shopping cart. She gave the bored woman sitting behind the counter a pleasant though slightly timid smile. "Hello!"_

_"Hi." The brunette woman sat up at her approach and smiled. "Stacking up for the winter?" she asked, picking up the first of the packages._

_"We're going camping for a few days," came the hesitant but still friendly answer._

_The brunette nodded appreciatively, seeing the brands of food picked. "Nice… good tastes too…" She stopped from scanning and looked up. "But don't you have a couple of strong brothers to help you carry it? This stuff is heavy."_

_"They're outside. They don't like shopping as much as I do." The girl giggled and placed a hand over her mouth to keep herself quiet._

_"Men." The brunette rolled her eyes._

_"Yeah," she agreed. "I like your nail polish," she said after a pause._

_"Oh?" The cashier seemed almost surprised that another Soul on earth might find such a bright color appealing. "It's called Pomegranate Gem. You can find it on the middle shelf on the third aisle. You better get a new bottle of nail polish remover too. It takes forever to wipe it off," she muttered._

_"I will." The girl smiled. She paid, loaded her bags of groceries into her cart, and left._

_The sun was starting to set when the cashier left the supermarket, having finished her shift. The soft warm breeze was dancing in her long, wavy hair. She tossed it back over her shoulder and continued to walk towards her car. A good long soaking in the tub at home sounded like a good idea. At least her feet hurt less than the other day; these new sandals were much more comfortable._

_"Oh, hi. Car trouble?" she asked, seeing the blonde girl from the supermarket getting out of a van. She frowned slightly as two, then three, and then four tall men followed and surrounded her protectively. The young girl hadn't been kidding; she did have strong brothers._

_"Can you show us how to get to…?" The girl fumbled with a large map._

_"Sure." The brunette stepped closer, unaware of the danger. It was too late when she felt the presence behind her. She repressed the impulse to fight when someone grabbed her from behind and pressed something into her mouth._

I remembered everything in a flash. There hadn't been an insertion; they had simply kidnapped me. They'd kidnapped me! I couldn't hold back a whimper as liquid fear invaded my system in a rush. I wasn't used to that. But I also hadn't been kidnapped before, I was sure of _that_.

"No, no, it's alright. We're all friends here." The blonde girl hurried to comfort me, reaching out with her small hand but not finishing the gesture. She took a small object from the Healer and aimed it at her eyes, making the silver behind her irises glow.

"See, I'm like you." She smiled. "And so is Sunny here." She gestured towards an older brunette girl with a mass of curls framing her small round face that stood behind her. She didn't say anything about the 'brothers' surrounding them. One look at their wary and suspicious faces and I had a feeling they didn't feel the same way about me as the blonde girl did. I could only guess they were humans. That made me wary too.

"We're not gonna hurt you," she repeated like I was deaf, but she had such a nice smile that it was hard to hold a grudge.

"What… happened? Where… am I?" I stammered, confused.

"We want to talk to you about your host," she said.

"My… host?" I couldn't help it; the wariness slipped into my voice and I winced. That only made the men more suspicious. I couldn't identify which ones had kidnapped me. I had seen them only briefly in the parking lot with the sun shining from behind. However I could count, and the number fit the men in the room, except for an older man with white hair and Santa-like beard and a young boy in bad need of a haircut. There was also another girl, tall with long, straight black hair. That one scared me. "What about my host?"

"Can you hear her?" the blonde girl asked, leaning forward slightly. Her body language betrayed her. The answer had to be important to her.

But hear her? What kind of question was that? "Umm…" I had to stop my eyes from narrowing. "No… why?" Wrong answer. Or perhaps it shouldn't have been followed by a question.

"But that's not a foreign concept to you, is it?" The man with sun bleached hair jumped at the opportunity, and his question sounded more like an accusation.

"I… uhh…" I hesitated but continued with a weak voice, "I have heard of such cases." It was better to tell them the truth. Maybe they knew about such things, since they asked.

"But she doesn't speak to you?" the brunette girl with straight hair asked.

"No. She never has."

She sighed and shook her head.

This made me continue. If I was considered damaged goods, who knew that they might see fit to do to me? "I had dreams for a while in the beginning," – her dreams, but I didn't feel the need to specify that – "and then they just stopped." My voice was somber, and I lowered my eyes. I cringed upon seeing the hand with bright red fingernails. Yes, it was my body I was wearing; I had that confirmation now.

"Do you know why?" It was the first time the Healer had spoken.

I raised my eyes. "She chose to… vanish… for good." I was hard to find the right words, and there was a chance they might not understand.

"How come?" The young boy watched me with curiosity.

"Her partner died." It pained me to think about that episode. Some might think it had brought me peace, but it was far from that.

"Oh, I'm sorry for your partner," the other brunette girl, the one with curly hair, said with compassion.

"No, it was _her _human partner. I guess she saw no reason to live without him." I shrugged carelessly, but it was far from what I actually felt.

There was a gasp from someone standing behind the line of tall men, and I saw a top of brown hair as the man headed out of the room. He disappeared through the exit. I caught a brief glance of his face before he left, and the sudden pain that stabbed my heart made me wince. The older man looked back and shook his head, but didn't say anything.

"I'm sorry," the blonde girl murmured.

"That's all right. It was a long time ago." I wasn't keen on telling them how long exactly. Humans didn't take kindly to first wave of invaders.

"There's no point in trying then," the dark haired man with striking blue eyes who stood close to her said.

"I guess not," she sighed.

Try what? My eyebrows furrowed and I wished someone would explain to me what was going on.

"But that doesn't mean she can't stay?" The boy looked up at the adults for approval.

"Well, she needs to rest for now and then we'll see if she likes it here." The Healer smiled. "What's your name, by the way?"

"Star… light." I hoped the hesitation had passed unnoticed.

"Hi! I'm Wanda, or Wanderer if you like." The blonde girl gave me a friendly smile. "This is Doc," she nodded at the Healer, "Ian…" the blue eyed man, "Mel…" the scary girl, "Jared…" sun bleached hair, "Jamie…" the boy, " Sunny…" mouse-like features girl, "Kyle…" huge like Ian, "and Jeb." She listed everyone around, and they nodded in return while I committed their faces to the memory.

"Welcome to our home, Starlight." The old man – Jeb – grinned.

**- Author's note**:

Thank you to my wonderful beta readers. If you read it, please review.


	2. Chapter 2

~ 2 ~

Two days I spent inside the so-called hospital. No, there was nothing wrong with me. The Humans possessed a lot of our medications and, relying on Candy's knowledge – a middle aged woman who worked as a Healer and used to be a Soul – Doc got me up and running in no time. Which was mostly a figure of speech. I didn't feel like running in a thousand meter race yet, but I could work on that. Besides, there was nothing else for me to do.

I had been advised to wait in the recovery room and rest until further notice, and it sounded more like an order than a suggestion, regardless the tone. My suspicion was confirmed by the way Doc and his card game partner, Brandt, glanced up at me each time I was getting anywhere near the exit. I wasn't supposed to leave the hospital by myself; I got it!

Sitting still on that cot and waiting for the time to pass didn't work for me, though. So I got up and, after a short walk around the room to loosen my muscles, I did a few stretches. It was pleasant to hear the joints pop and feel the blood flow.

"This body used to be in the gymnastics team in college," I explained as I turned my torso to the left and right repeatedly. "It's not happy unless I exercise every day."

Brandt grunted and Doc just nodded, accepting my explanation. They didn't look too concerned at the moment. I could stretch as much as I wanted; there was no place for me to go anyway. I had already figured out we were inside some rocky formation with natural cavities, as it was easy to see by the walls this was no handmade building. And the faint monotone sound that beat against the ceiling had to be the rain. Monsoon season must have come earlier this year.

Lunch (or was that dinner?) was brought in by Trudy. I would have preferred some clean clothes and a shower, but I didn't make a fuss about it. I ate my meal because I needed the extra energy supply. The food wasn't bad; it was edible while being simple, and the portion was a tad too small. I had always had a good control on my diet. It was the first thing I mastered when taking a new Host, so I didn't mind. The slow passing of time was harder to bear.

The bait dropped by for a short visit some time later. I could understand a Soul's concern for another Soul's well being – that was natural for us. She seemed to feel particularly responsible for me since apparently it had been her idea. I was about to realize that where Wanda went, Ian went too, and the same went for Melanie and Jared. Usually the small boy wouldn't be far from either of them. They were a tight group.

Still, they were the only two couples that visited me that time. I watched them, fascinated how they related to each other, how they always tried to touch each other even if it was for a brief moment. I hadn't had the chance to observe humans in their own habitat for years, and it was very interesting. The relationship between the Soul and the human was the most difficult to understand. They looked perfectly at ease with each other.

"Hi, how are you feeling?" said Wanda, smiling.

"Not too bad," I murmured. I didn't like the way the two men were towering over me.

"Sorry that you have to stay here for now," she apologized.

"It _is _the most comfortable place we've got." Ian laughed. Was that supposed to be a joke? Because it certainly didn't seem like one to me.

Doc and Brandt excused themselves and disappeared. Was I going to be left alone when the visitors left? Why had they come in the first place?

"We have a couple of questions for you," Jared said, getting straight to the point. "Are there people who would worry about your disappearance?"

They wanted to announce I was fine? How thoughtful of them.

"Family? Friends? Co-workers?" Melanie suggested.

"No family." I shook my head. "No close friends in the area, since I'm new around here. And it was my last day at work." All true so far.

"You're new in the area and you changed your Calling already?" Wanda seemed surprised. Her fingers played with a long blonde lock.

"Yeah." I shook my head. I wasn't proud of it. "I gave it a try but I didn't like it. I found it too… boring." It sure didn't compare to my real job. I could feel my brain cells dying while sitting on that stool and scanning groceries from right to left.

"Well, that's good then," Wanda said. "You won't mind if you have to wait a couple of days before we get you back? It would be better when the rain stopped." And safer for them, I assumed.

"Uhh…" Like I had a choice. "I… I guess," I stammered.

"And like Jamie said, you might like it here." Ian winked.

"Err…" I looked around, and the uneasy feeling in my gut must have been reflected on my face.

"It gets better, I promise." He laughed again.

"We would like to show you around, but Uncle Jeb insists to do the honour for the guests since it's his home," Mel said. "He'll come later."

At least it was something to look forward to. "OK."

"And talking about home, where are you from?" Wanda asked with open curiosity. "This is my tenth planet. That's why they call me Wanderer." She looked up and smiled warmly at Ian. "It's where I found my home."

"I… I was born on the Origin," I told her, "and then I lived on the Flowers planet, the Fire Eaters planet, and the Mists planet."

"That's pretty crazy," Ian commented. Jared just watched me. What had I said?

"I like to experience new things," I replied.

"So do I, but I could never bring myself to live with the Fire Eaters." Wanda shuddered.

"It used to be much worse, and things are better now," I said. We'd had to lead a terrible fight to gain the edge, and we had won in the end. It didn't look like we were winning on Earth, though.

"Where would you like to go next? Back to one of those planets or to a new world?" Melanie asked, which earned her a glance from Wanda.

"I haven't decided yet. I have barely lived a quarter of the term and there are lots of things to do and see here," I said.

My answer didn't seem to satisfy her. She just stared at me with calculating eyes that I knew were judging me.

"We have to go," Jared reminded them. "There's still work to do."

"We'll see you later." Wanda reached over and hugged me. It was awkward, her tiny arms around my waist, but I eventually leaned into it. "Don't worry, everything will be fine."

I really wished I could believe it.

I watched them walk to the door, aware that they were leaving me alone for the first time and wondering what to do with my newfound freedom.

Was it a test? They must have been suspicious like they were with all Souls, but they had picked me. They must have done some previous research. They didn't just kidnap random Souls in the street. _That _wouldn't be safe.

I swayed in place, hesitating, something so unlike me. But this was new uncharted territory, and I didn't want to get myself into deeper trouble. Then the opportunity was lost. Doc walked back in.

"I hope they didn't tire you too much?" He smiled gently at me.

"No, they just asked some questions." I rolled a shoulder. Now what? Back to counting the cracks in the ceiling?

A woman accompanied by two kids rushed in. One of the boys had scraped his knees; he was crying and rubbing his eyes furiously. I stepped aside so I didn't get in the way and let Doc do his job. Meanwhile, the other boy busied himself with the room. He tried to climb on a pile of boxes covered by a blanket neatly stacked in a corner. He slipped, fell, and we ended up with a second pair of scratched knees. The blanket was tossed to the floor.

Doc and the mother were attending to the other kid, so I went to help him pick himself up from the floor. I barely touched his hand when my eyes ran into the contents of the boxes he'd tried to climb on.

I recognized them immediately: cryotanks. Empty cryotanks.

I sucked in a breath and looked at Doc with a silent question burning in my eyes. I had to force myself to lift up the boy and carry him to the cot next to his brother. At least he wasn't crying. This one was older and had more experience with getting hurt and being treated by Doc. He knew the pain was going to disappear as soon as Doc got to treat him.

But he didn't have to wait. I took the container labelled No Pain from Doc's side and reached in to place the square shaped medicine on his tongue. He had already opened his mouth, showing that it wasn't his first encounter with it.

"Well, well, she's been here one day and tries to steal my job already," Doc teased me.

"Been camping long enough to know one or two things that can help in the wild, but that's all I know." I shook my head. That's what we had Healers for.

He smiled, finished patching up the boy, and moved to the next. I let him do it and didn't even bother to watch. I didn't like blood. My eyes kept flicking back to the cryotank stack.

"Don't worry, those are not for you," Doc said as the patients left the hospital. He went to cover them back up with the blanket.

Suddenly, Wanda and Mel's questions seemed to make much more sense.


	3. Chapter 3

~ 3 ~

Dinner was late. My internal clock was telling me it was time for another meal. It was also time for a visit to the bathroom. They never let me visit without an escort, so I had to sit tight until they came to get me.

I was about to ask Doc to take me when the door opened and Jeb showed up. He was carrying a gun.

The sight should have shocked me, but I couldn't help feeling that having a gun on you at all times was normal. _This _was how things were supposed to be. Humans weren't _that _kind or trusting.

"Uncle Jeb, I'm so glad you came," Doc said with a grin in his voice. "She kicked my ass!"

Ha, and I had tried my best to let him win! He wasn't a good card player. I put my cards down.

"Well, it's a good thing that money became obsolete then." Uncle Jeb smirked. "Don't let him fool you, honey. This house is mine. He can't bet on it."

"Okay." I forced a smile. Humans liked smiles.

Uncle Jeb smiled back at me. "You're smiling more and more each day. We feared you might panic like Souls usually do."

"Should I?" I asked tentatively.

"No, not if you follow my rules..." He gave me a long look, estimating the chances I would do that. "Now, how about a tour? Would you like to see my home?"

The look I gave him was just as long. "That should be… interesting."

"Interesting. That's one way to put it." Doc chuckled.

Had I made a mistake? Too late now. He had a gun, and he'd probably make me go anyway.

"Let's go then, we don't want to miss dinner." Uncle Jeb grinned. "Do you mind if I call you Starry? It's shorter."

I shrugged my shoulders. It made no difference to me. Neither was my real name, not anymore. I got up and turned around. I had been so focused on the gun that I hadn't noticed the other presence in the doorway.

"Oh, this is Matt. He's a new guest too, so he'll come with us." It was the only explanation he gave me.

The man leaning against the wall at the entrance was in his early thirties, and had brown hair and cold, smoky-gray eyes. He seemed so cold. He had no smile for me. Actually, when he looked at me I instantly knew that he hated me. Of course, because I was a Soul.

As Jeb passed by him, I noticed Matt was a few inches taller, younger, and stronger. If he wanted to kill me, that gun might not be enough to stop him. It was a risk I had to take. I settled into an easy stride beside Jeb, matching my steps with his, and I heard _him_ doing the same thing behind us. This was going to be a long tour.

There wasn't much to see, just one tunnel after another; his flashlight lit up the same purple rocky walls that held no natural light. I tried to memorize the route, but after so many twists and turns, I was fairly convinced I was lost. If he left me there, I would never find my way back to the hospital or out. And no one would ever know what had happened to me. That was a depressing thought.

"It's not as bad as it looks, Starry," Uncle Jeb said, spotting the grimace on my face.

I mumbled something unintelligible that disagreed with him. His definition of bad was different from mine.

"It took a lot of work, but we managed to make this place liveable," he bragged.

"So you're not just hiding here?" The question escaped my lips before I could think that he might find it offensive.

He stopped and gave me a bemused look. It made me stop as well. Too abruptly, and my back collided against the other man's chest, making me jump in place. Strong hands went up to grip at my arms and steady me, protect me… or protect himself? I pulled away feeling uncomfortable. That touch wasn't right. "Sorry," I mumbled, though he should have been the one to apologize.

"I like her." Uncle Jeb aimed a grin over my shoulder towards Matt. I didn't think he meant it; he was probably just being sarcastic. "When Wanda first came here she wouldn't speak for weeks, you know?" He started walking again. "I like it much better this way."

I gave him a suspicious look, but I kept my mouth shut. I could imagine Wanda refusing to talk to anyone; but then again she had helped kidnap me, so maybe she wasn't so shy and easy to frighten as she looked.

"So feel free to speak. We don't bite," he encouraged me.

No, they just shot people.

"Umm, you said something about rules?" I asked, when in fact I wanted to know what the point of this tour was, during which all I got to see were walls that made me claustrophobic.

"Ah, you were paying attention." He nodded. "That's good. The rules are simple. While you are under my roof," – he chuckled because there was no actual roof above our heads – "you have to help support our little community, and you can't hurt anyone."

It sounded simple, all right. "What if they hurt me?" I muttered quietly.

"They won't. You are my guest and the punishment for that is either banishment or death. My house, my rules."

It sounded good in theory. But would they listen? That, I didn't know. Wanda and Sunny had survived and seemed to be accepted, so maybe I could do too. Survive, that is, long enough for me to get out of there. Yeah, that was a good plan.

Ahead of us, the corridor seemed to slowly begin to lighten, and after a couple of steps it opened into a cave larger than anything I had seen before.

"This is our Main Plaza," Uncle Jeb told me. "It's more populated during the day. Better get used to it, as you'll pass by here often."

I made a face and looked up. Through a series of cracks in the tall ceiling, the rain was pouring in, and we had to be careful where we stepped not to get soaked.

"Where _are_ we?" I murmured.

"The desert." He had no problem answering the question, although it was vague.

I pictured in my head the map with thousands of square miles of dried land, and I grimaced again. No one was going to find me. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack. I was on my own.

"Oh, there you are!" From the darkness, Trudy headed our way. "I was just coming over with some clothes." She smiled and handed me a folded shirt and pants.

"We don't usually dress for dinner, but I thought you might like to change before we eat." Uncle Jeb grinned.

"I would also like a shower," I said, eyeing the clothes. They smelled funny.

"No shower here, sorry, but we do have a pool." He winked.

This was not the time to be fussy, not while he was still holding that gun. I gave him a hopeful look.

"Come on." He nodded for us to continue our tour. "Save us some dinner, Trudy."

"I'll keep it warm for you." The woman smiled and disappeared in the darkness, returning to where she'd come from.

"This way."

We took a turn and after more walking and less talking, we entered another smaller cave. In fact, it looked more like a wider corridor with an opening towards something bigger and darker.

"The bathing room is in there," Uncle Jeb explained. "No one's using it at this hour. So it's all yours." He searched through his pockets and produced something wrapped in paper. With a little bit of imagination, it smelt like soap. He handed it to me along with the flashlight.

"OK, you're prepared now. The latrine is in the back. Oh, and don't bother washing your clothes, you can do that tomorrow. Get in and enjoy, we'll wait for you here." He nodded encouragingly, and I nodded back like it was expected of me. I wasn't sure I liked that arrangement much, but he still had the gun and it still made me uneasy, so I obliged.

"And Starry," I heard Uncle Jeb say as I turned to walk inside. "Don't get too adventurous in there. We've had… accidents."

I nodded once again, taking the warning for what it was. I entered the bathing room, leaving the two men in darkness behind me. There was barely enough light for me to get an idea of the surroundings, but I managed to find a small swimming pool in the middle of the cave. I stopped before stepping into the water and wet my sandals. I glanced back, but there was no sign of the humans, and I couldn't hear them either. If they were talking, they had to be doing it quietly.

My stomach rumbled, reminding me they had to be hungry too. I had to hurry. I washed up quickly in the lukewarm water. I even washed my hair and then pulled it back in a ponytail and tied it with a rubber band I found in the pocket of the new pair of pants. I used the old clothes to dry myself and I put on the new ones. They still had the price tags attached. The pants were one inch too short, leaving my ankles uncovered, and the shirt was a bit too large, but they fit overall. The dim light dulled the colors, and I could only hope they looked better in daylight.

I wasted no time. I put reluctance aside and left the safety of the dark cavern to return to 'civilization'. Without a word, I handed the flashlight and soap to Uncle Jeb – I still had one hand busy holding my old clothes – and I waited patiently for the next move.

He looked at me up and down and seemed to be satisfied with the end result. "Hungry?" he asked, and didn't wait for me to answer. "Let's show her the kitchen." He grinned at the younger man. Not a muscle moved on Matt's face. A statue would have shown more feelings than he did. I walked carefully around him and started after our tour guide. At least he acted human.

And I was going to have enough of humans soon. Nothing could prepare me for what awaited me in the kitchen.

I froze in the entrance and stared at the cluster of people. Over thirty humans were dining inside. I hadn't seen so many humans in one place in years. And they all knew who I was and what I was. Well, part of who I was, anyway.

"Listen up, people," Uncle Jeb asked for everyone's attention. "This is Starry, she's new here so be nice – "

Before he could finish Wanda partially got up and waved at me. "Come here, come here!"

I looked at Jeb first, not knowing what I was supposed to do. He nodded so I went to her and, as the group surrounding her shuffled to make room for me, I slid into a place with my back at the wall and a good view of the entrance. I noticed that Matt was doing something similar and keeping an eye on me. I _think_ that he was trying to be discreet, but he wasn't succeeding, not as far as I was concerned.

"Starry?" Melanie arched an eyebrow.

"He seems to prefer shorter names," answered Wanda.

The two girls exchanged a look and grinned, probably an inside joke. Ian got up and brought me a bowl of soup, a roll of bread, and a mixture of cooked vegetables. It was more than I had gotten for lunch, and my stomach grumbled in anticipation.

We were almost done eating and Jamie was getting restless. "Will you tell us the stories tonight?"

"Sorry?" I raised my eyes to him, having no idea what he was talking about.

"Not now, Jamie, let her be," Wanda scolded him. "Maybe another day." She smiled at both of us.

"Maybe…" I mumbled. I still had no idea what they were talking about.

Wanda smiled. She smiled too much, and it was beginning to get annoying. Or maybe it was just me being stressed. When she got up, only Ian followed her, while the rest of the humans remained in their places as if waiting for something. The evening entertainment, perhaps? Wanda pulled out several pots and pans and placed them on the counter along with a bag of flour and some other ingredients. I wasn't much of a cook, but I understood she was preparing to make bread.

I propped my head in my hand and just watched. It didn't take long until the humans started asking questions, questions about her. She answered slowly, describing with great detail the life on other planets, places these people were never going to visit.

She was… teaching them. About us Souls.

Traitor! I pressed back against the wall behind me. How could she do that? But as I listened, I noticed that the questions were genuine and the voices were full of curiosity and not hate. Maybe… maybe she was teaching them, showing them we weren't as bad as they thought.

Jamie kept chatting with her, interrupting occasionally and even answering in her place.

The two couples beside me, Melanie and Jared and Sunny and Kyle, were wrapped around each other. When one batch was ready to be baked, Ian was jumping off of the counter next to Wanda and helping her put the tray in the oven. The smell of baked bread was filling the kitchen. It felt like a night spent around the fire telling stories, something I had seen in old movies. It felt… nice. And it made me miss home, although I didn't know where that was.

When the lecture ended people started to leave, heading one way while Doc and I went the other. He was taking me back to the hospital. Just for one night, Wanda had said, then they were going to arrange something else. I didn't miss the fact that a set of footsteps followed us from the distance and then stopped outside the entrance. I didn't see who it was but I didn't hear them leave either. They might have acted friendly, but they didn't trust me. Neither did I.


	4. Chapter 4

~ 4 ~

I didn't sleep much that night. My head was pounding with thoughts, worries and plans. I lay in the darkness, listening to Doc's soft snoring, and plotted. I wasn't helpless; I had to believe that if I wanted to succeed. I just had to lay low, keep a low profile, be everything they expected a Soul to be: good, nice and abhorring violence. I could do that. After all, I _was _a Soul.

After much twisting and turning, I must have fallen asleep. I woke up when a hand gently shook my shoulder.

"Good morning," Wanda whispered gently, not to startle me. "Fancy some breakfast?"

Between a yawn and a stretch I figured out it wasn't just a polite invitation, and I had to accept it. I was ready.

"Uh-huh…" I rolled off the bed to follow her. Ian and Matt were talking in the corridor and both greeted me politely. "Morning," I mumbled, eyes still heavy with sleep. It made me wonder whether they had slipped something in my dinner the previous night, but I didn't think so.

The corridors were just as dark as I remembered. Inside the larger spaces and occasional 'rooms', that happened to have their doors open, there was light coming from the ceiling, not as bright as daylight but enough not to need the flashlight. It was morning indeed.

By the number of people in the kitchen I figured it was later than I had imagined. They had let me sleep in. I took a place by the counter and waited patiently. Wanda seemed to know her way around the kitchen and quickly put up together a breakfast for us. The men settled for some rolls, a sign that they had eaten already. I was tempted to let them have mine too. Where I came from life was hard, but at least the food was good.

When Wanda brought back some breakfast, the four of us sat down. I simply stared at the bland eggs and sausage that seemed to have been hastily dumped on my plate. Knowing that I needed the protein, I swallowed my pride and chewed, determined to get through the tasteless breakfast.

They were talking about the plans for the day, and it sounded like a bit of work had to be done. I wondered where I fit in all that. A crashing loud noise rocked the room, and I lowered my head, looking around in panic.

"It's all right," Ian told me. "They took down another wall. We're enlarging the place."

He was grinning so I assumed that was a good thing. The so-called rooms were rather small and, as long as the entire structure didn't collapse on us, nothing stopped them from doing it.

"Are you done?" Wanda gestured towards my empty plate. "Want any more?"

"No, I'm fine. Thanks." I wasn't hungry anymore, and eating _that_ food just to stuff my stomach was a waste of energy.

Ian got up. "We should go then. I'll walk with you." He reached out to take Wanda's hand. "But then I have to go do my own work. Matt will help you if you need anything."

Wanda didn't protest, and I was hardly in a position to do so, but I would have liked it better if Ian had stayed. The blue-eyed guy acted friendlier than the cold-eyed one. Matt looked like he wanted to chop my head off most of the time. But I guess they all had to do their share of work for the welfare of the community. If they were talking about enlarging the caves, Ian had to be a bigger help since he was heavily built.

I was led to another large cave, not as big as the Main Plaza but close. Unlike the kitchen and the hospital, the cracks in the ceiling were not covered letting the rain along with the light, pour in. We stopped in the entrance of the cave and I looked around at the crop of… something growing on that ground.

"Don't worry about the cracks," Ian said. "We checked the ceiling two days ago and it was fine. It won't fall down on you."

That meant that in particular circumstances it _could _fall down on us. Great. Not just kidnapped, but buried alive too. Wonderful.

Matt shifted and I instinctively stepped aside to put more distance between us. He was unfolding the stuff he'd been carrying underneath his arm, which I realized weren't plastic bags, but transparent raincoats.

"Put this on." Wanda took one from Matt and handed it to me. "We're going to plug the weeds."

We? So they had kidnapped me for labor work? That was disappointing. And that was one big crop field. I looked ahead over her shoulder.

"It's not hard," she assured me, reading my expression. "Oh, and you'll need a pair of these too."

She gestured to some rubber boots lined up along the wall. My sandals wouldn't have survived a trip on that field. I found two that matched my size and put them on. I felt like a whale wearing my new heavy attire; I doubted whales liked mud either.

I watched Ian as he kissed Wanda goodbye. I wondered what was going on through his head, making out with a Soul, and how did she felt in return. I understood feelings between Souls, between Humans too, but feelings between the two species I didn't. It wasn't right. It wasn't the way the Universe was supposed to work.

I didn't have time to dwell on those thoughts. Ian left, and we had to join the other few people working in the field.

Wanda gave me a crash course in agriculture, showing exactly what plants I had to pull out. She also explained a bit of how they managed to make everything grow in the unusual cavern setting. Once I found out that those plants were actually going to make potatoes I was less reluctant to help, although I hoped they didn't expect to keep me there until the fall crop, no matter how much I liked potatoes.

I was careful with the questions I asked because I could feel Matt's eyes on my back. I knew he was listening to our conversations, even if he wasn't participating. He still hadn't spoken a word to me. He was nice to Wanda, but it was hard not to be nice to her even for a Human, so maybe he didn't have a problem with _all _Souls. Was it just me? But in that case, it sounded like he had something personal against me and I couldn't figure out what or why. It wasn't like we had met before I was brought here. I would have remembered it.

Wanda's light chatting didn't fly right over my head. I was making an effort to pay attention to what she said in case it was going to come in handy later, while I was thinking about other things. It was good that she didn't expect many answers from my part. Those she did expect though were carefully extracted with well thought questions. She was a sneaky little thing, but I had a feeling she was only doing it to calm the others' suspicions. I knew a good Soul when I saw one.

At lunchtime, we took a break. Since we couldn't exactly eat in the rain, we hid in the corridor, where we sat on the floor with our backs propped against the walls. I had taken off my raincoat, and my boots sat between Matt and I like a shield. On my other side, Wanda was chewing her roll, taking small bites while talking with another worker. My back hurt, I was in bad need of a manicure, and the food was no better than before. At least my feet were fine, even if nothing else was.

I mostly kept to myself, not yet feeling comfortable with the group of Humans that Wanda was talking to. They seemed comfortable with each other, almost like a family. I was the intruder; I didn't know anyone, and they didn't know me. But then again, I didn't really want them to know me either.

Bottles of water were passed around, and Matt was handing them out at our end of the line. I hesitated when he offered me one, but then I took it tentatively like it was poisoned. Our fingers accidentally brushed, and I felt an electrical charge rush up my arm. His eyes opened wider as he stared at me and I retreated, my hand shaking slightly, nearly dropping the bottle on the way.

He'd felt it too. Or at least he'd felt _something_. He wasn't made of stone. What _I _had felt I wasn't sure. I had certainly never felt it before; this was strange and foreign, maybe to both of us.

I glared at the leftovers in my lap and put them down, not hungry anymore. Luckily, Wanda asked me a question that diverted my attention. I had something else to focus on for a while, and it was easier than facing those cold eyes.

The break didn't last long after that. We were back on our feet and into the field to pick the seemingly endless patches of weeds. This time, the working session was shorter. After two or maybe three hours, Jeb came and announced we had all worked enough for the day. I cast off my raincoat and boots. I was relieved; in spite of the warm weather my hands were cold because of the rain and my feet didn't do much better either.

Wanda saw me flexing my fingers, and she leaned in to say as we parted ways with the rest of the group, "How about we stop by the bathing room? The water is warm there."

From the corner of my eye I saw Matt frowning. He didn't like that idea. However, it sounded great to me, so too bad for him.

"Could we go get my clothes first? I'd like to wash them."

"OK," she agreed.

Matt walked with us until we reached a crossway and bumped into Melanie. She was covered in red dust from head to toes, but she was smiling happily.

"Hey, you're done working?" she asked.

"Yeah, we're going for a swim. Want to come? You look like you could use one too," Wanda teased.

"Well, I had something else in mind…" She blushed underneath the red powder. "But I'll come." She exchanged a glance with Matt. "Let's go get some soap and towels. Oh, if you see Jared, can you tell him I'm at the bathing room with the girls? Thanks."

He frowned, but nodded and slowly remained behind. Melanie led our small group to the hospital for me to get some clothes, a bar of soap and a towel. They were all conveniently stacked on my cot. Then we went to the girls' rooms to get their things. I felt lost long before we arrived to the bathing room.

Melanie kept the flashlight on only until we reached the border of the water, and it was clear she did it for me, since Wanda marched right over ahead of us. There, she turned it off so we could undress, and we entered the water. I walked forward until I reached the deepest part of the pool and started to float on top. It wasn't deep enough for swimming, but it contained plenty of salt to help me float. I wondered idly what all that salt did to my hair.

"Are you still alive there, Starry?" I heard Melanie call out once she realized I had been quiet.

"Yeah…" I sighed from only a few meters away.

"The water feels good, doesn't it?" Wanda giggled and I could hear some splashing.

"Yes, it's fine." Letting out another sigh, I rolled myself over again and started washing, first my body and then my clothes.

"You don't talk much, do you?" Melanie remarked.

"Umm… I'm tired." It was a lame excuse, but I was. I didn't know why since I hadn't been doing much all day except for pulling weeds. Maybe there was something wrong with my Host; I would have to ask Doc about that.

"Well, you can rest until dinner," Wanda told me. "Then you'll have to come up with some really good stories."

"Stories?"

"Jamie expects you to tell him about the Fire Eaters planet. I don't know much since I've never been there."

"I'm not much of a storyteller," I muttered. And the stories I knew I couldn't tell.

"You'll find out it's not easy to resist his charm." Wanda's giggle echoed inside the cave.

"He's my brother, but I'll have to agree." Melanie laughed.

Hmm, we were going to see about that. The idea of spending the entire evening talking to Humans about things they were never going to see ruined my already worn-out mood, and I pulled myself out of the water. I dried myself with nervous gestures and put my clothes on. There was still nothing I could do about my hair; in the absence of a decent shampoo and conditioner, it tended to get wiry curls that screamed for a good brushing.

I stood up and waited for the girls to finish talking and splashing. The thought of trying to find my way on my own did cross my mind, but that wouldn't have been appreciated by a lot of the Humans who still didn't trust me. So I wouldn't do it in the middle of the day…

"Everyone decent in there?" The male voice coming from outside the entrance startled me a little.

"Never decent!" Melanie shouted back, and Wanda broke out into a fit of laughter, giving away her position a few steps to my left.

"You can come in, Jared," Wanda said when she was done giggling. "Are you done, Mel?"

"Umm… not quite…" Her friend laughed. "I'm staying a little longer… you girls, go ahead."

"OK." Wanda sounded like she was trying hard to stifle a giggle, and then I felt her hand reaching for mine. "We should go now," she whispered towards me.

I had watched plenty of Human movies to have a fairly good idea of what was going to happen between those walls any second now, so we walked out of the cave, letting Melanie and Jared have their privacy.

Outside, the spotlight emerging from Wanda's flashlight ran into another. Matt's.

"The bathing room is occupied now. You'll have to come back later," she told him, and I knew from her tone that she was blushing.

"That's all right." Matt shrugged. "Ian is looking for you. I'll show her the way back." He gestured towards me, and I had no other choice but to go with him.

"Oh… OK, thanks." Wanda smiled, jumping to accept the offer way too fast. "I'll see you later," she told me and the next second she disappeared down the corridor. I cursed her for how easily she became distracted like a teenager at the mere mention of a certain Human name. What about me? She'd left me there alone with the… monster with cold eyes.

Matt nodded at me, signaling to start walking and for lack of a better option I did. He used the spotlight to show me the way, since he preferred to stay behind. Was he one of those deviant Humans with a fetish involving women's behinds? But no, his plan was just to trick me, I soon figured out. At the next crossway, he didn't point to right or left tunnel but waited for me to pick one.

I stopped and turned to look at him.

"Wouldn't it be easier to just give me a map?"

"No."

The big ape finally acknowledged me as a life form capable of intelligent conversation. How considerate of him.

I chose the left path, and luckily, it was the right way. He delivered me to the hospital entrance and left me there. Or did he? Doc was busy reading a file so I waited about half a minute and then I walked out on the corridor. Matt's eyebrows rose as if asking what I wanted. I just shook my head at him and returned to my prison cell.

I spent half an hour combing my hair, wincing each time the borrowed comb got stuck in the knots, and I promised myself never to leave home without conditioner in my purse again, if I survived this. Seeing that Doc was still busy, I lay on the cot to rest my muscles and eventually fell asleep, taking a well-deserved nap.

It was close to dinnertime when I woke up. Doc was rubbing his eyes, and he gave me a tired smile. There was something odd about the quietness of the cave, and it took me a minute to realize it was quiet. It had stopped raining.

Wanda came in through a smaller door that I assumed led to an adjacent cave, and she shook her head sadly. Doc sighed. Something was going on. Whatever it was, the exchange was quick, and the next moment Wanda was smiling in my direction.

"Did you rest well?"

"Yeah." Close enough. "I don't know why I was so tired…"

"It's the anesthetic we used." Doc gave me a sheepish look.

"Don't you use Sleep?" I asked. "It has no side effects." They sure had other of our medicines, so why not this one?

"When we have it, yes." His answer sounded a little strained. I figured that they probably ran out of supplies from time to time. I had noticed that in the kitchen already. Their catering sucked.

I nodded, not sure what else to say. I had a lot of questions, but they probably wouldn't answer them directly. It had only been two days since I woke up and started learning about their home.

Wanda had told me a few things about her past while we were working on the field. It had taken them months to accept her, and even if they were more comfortable with her now, there were a select few that still showed some resentment. Their home was at stake, after all. I couldn't say I didn't understand their point of view; after all, Humans were hunted and supposed to be extinct.

"Shall we go to dinner, ladies?" Doc stretched his arms. Hearing him call us that made me want to laugh.

I raised an eyebrow at Wanda. "More baking?"

"It relaxes me." She smiled. She was not an ordinary Soul.

Why wasn't I surprised when we found Matt coming towards us as we walked out on the corridor? My appointed guardian was only five seconds late. It was good to know I could count on his punctuality when I absolutely didn't need it.

In the kitchen, I ended up sitting with the same group of people I sat with the night before. Wanda had sort of taken me under her protective wing, and that made me feel accepted, or at least not frowned upon, by her friends. Not that it made me feel safer. I wouldn't have felt safer even if I had been the one holding the gun. There were too many of them.

While they left me in peace to 'enjoy' my dinner, which I discovered could only be done if I wasn't thinking about it, the kid didn't follow their example. He kept eyeing me until he gathered the courage to ask me a question.

"Hey, Starry?" he tentatively asked, his voice soft and curious. "Could you tell me a story about your time living on the planet of the Fire Eaters?"

I knew it was coming, but I was a little unprepared, and it caught me off guard. I answered because it was the polite thing to do. "I'm not sure you want to hear about that."

"Wanda told me a little bit… but she said you knew more." His eager brown eyes bore into mine. "Please, Starry?"

I finally just sighed, knowing it was only a little kid I was speaking to, and said slowly, "Well, the Fire Eaters planet was full of fire, if you know what I mean."

One story led to another, and he never seemed to have enough. I wasn't used to talking to children as I had never had a child of my own; I talked to him like he was an adult. He seemed to like that. The room started to get quiet as I went on, and I pretended not to notice that more and more people were listening to our conversation. I was trying to stay focused on the amount of information I was giving away and what they might do with it. But I couldn't stop, and I couldn't help laughing at some of Jamie's remarks.

"I told you it's hard to resist him," Wanda whispered with a smile as she passed me to start baking.

I shot her an annoyed look, and I laid back with arms crossed upon my chest, expecting her own storytelling to start. I couldn't be converted into one of them that easily, could I? Some might say it went against my nature.

I didn't have to look to know a cold pair of eyes was watching me. I had gotten used to the constant feeling of glares full of dislike and, although I didn't let it show, I never forgot he was there. When our eyes locked for a brief moment, there was an odd tug in the left side of my chest. I looked away, not trying to understand what it meant; self preservation went far beyond my inherited curiosity.

Jamie tried to include me in their nightly entertainment of telling stories, but I was reluctant to join. Wanda was the star of the show. It was much better for myself if I melted in the background as much as they let me. But Jamie was persistent and I was beginning to feel harassed.

"I'm tired, I would like to go to bed," I told Melanie during one of the breaks. I would have addressed Sunny, but something told me that she was the next in command after Wanda. Of course no one was higher in hierarchy than Old Jeb, but I didn't want to bother him with my request, although he seemed almost nice, for a Human.

Melanie exchanged a look with Jared. "Well, we agreed for you to join us in the game room to sleep." There was something in her tone telling me she hadn't been in favor of this decision. "I suppose Matt can help you carry your things there…"

My things? Was that a joke? And what was she talking about? I would have preferred to leave the crowd, although some of the Humans had retired for the night already. I was indeed tired, more emotionally than physically for a change.

I turned to look at Matt, as it was up to him. If he didn't feel like leaving the party, I wouldn't either. But he stood up quietly and waited for me to join him.

"See you later," Sunny murmured after me from where she sat wrapped around Kyle.

That erased my suspicions that they were going to send me away to be executed or abandoned in some dark tunnel.

The way back to the hospital took much longer than before. Matt had chosen a different route, no doubt. I watched him as he stripped the blanket off my cot and then folded them both.

He handed me the blanket. "Get your things," he said with a blank voice.

I picked up my one set of clothes and the toiletries I had been given. He could carry the cot and the flashlight at once. He held the flashlight like a gun, and I didn't need anything else to tell me to start walking ahead of him. Even with his hands full, I still hated having him walk behind me.

After another longer twisted walk, at the end of which the only clear thing was that we were one level below, we entered a large cave I hadn't been shown before. My eyes were picking up details fast; there was no opening in the ceiling and therefore no rain, and there was a worrying amount of cots and mattresses, most of them occupied.

Matt set my cot down in an area close to the people I was more familiar with like Wanda and Melanie – I figured the show must have ended early with my absence. The girls were sharing their beds with their men, and Matt went to his own mattress only a few feet away.

"Thanks," I muttered without sincerity, since I wasn't sure he'd really done me a favor.

For a moment I just stood there, not knowing what to do. Then I saw Uncle Jeb watching me from distance with a smile dancing on his lips, and I let out a small sigh. I stored my things underneath the cot, spread the blanket above it, and laid down.

"Good night, Starry!" Jamie's voice called out cheerfully.

"Good night," I mumbled.

Things were already hard with all those Humans surrounding me and, when the lights were turned off, I couldn't hold back a shudder. Anyone could come over at some point during the night and attempt to cut my throat or murder me in some other way. This was worse than torture, I thought. I couldn't sleep all night, and it wasn't Uncle Jeb's snoring that kept me awake.


	5. Chapter 5

~ 5 ~

Sleepless nights started to accumulate one after another. During the day, I was helping with one thing or another, but the nights were mine. There were no doors at the entrance to the game room, and they had made the big mistake of putting me not far from the exit. It didn't help that some people left their flashlights in sight. The temptation was too strong.

So each night, I waited a couple of hours until everyone was asleep, and then I grabbed a flashlight and quietly snuck out of the game room. The first night I did it only to test their guard watch and to see if I could actually do get around it. I had a good excuse: a stringent need to use the bathroom and no need to wake one of them. By then I had been walked back and forth through the tunnels enough times to assume that I had at least a vague idea of every room's placement in the structure. In fact, I had a clear map inside my head that detailed most of the corridors – the circulated ones anyway. My biggest test was to walk around without turning the flashlight on. I was convinced that one day my life was going to depend on it, just like I knew that this body needed oxygen to survive.

My objectives were simple and practical: learn the topography of the place, find somewhere to hide, and locate the exit. The first two goals were easy to achieve, but the third one was close to impossible. Maybe if I had more time I could figure it out, but I didn't dare to be away for too long, and I always ended the trip in the bathing room so I could return with my hair wet and a plausible excuse in case someone happened to be awake and saw me.

During the day, I paid close attention to their faces, looking for a sign, a hint that they were aware of my nightly activities. But I couldn't see any. Were they so trusting that they weren't concerned about the new Soul that lived under their roof? I must have spent too much time behind that counter, my brain was fried.

One night when I was coming back from a nightly adventure, I heard a voice say, "Where have you been?" Jamie's whisper made me freeze in place, and I felt a cold chill run down my spine. This was it? It was over?

"I went for a swim…" I murmured and twisted my hair so that he could hear large drops of water hit the floor. "I… I'm more comfortable… when I'm alone." The kid needed a reason, and hopefully after I gave him one he was going to forget about it and go back to sleep.

"You don't trust us, do you?" He shifted in place. It was too dark to see him, but I could picture him in my head, lying on his stomach with his head propped in his hands. Oh, no, he was definitely in for a chat.

"It's… hard," I admitted.

"It's okay. It was hard for Wanda at first too, and Sunny is still wary to leave Kyle's side… you just need time." I thought it was kind of nice of him to try to comfort me.

Someone else stirred.

"Yeah," I murmured, and perhaps he was right. "Jamie, we're waking people up. Go to sleep."

"Good night, Starry."

"Good night."

I quickly went to my cot and lay there, staring blindly at the ceiling, and I told myself that if I didn't get out of there soon I was at risk of becoming like Wanda; I would stop being afraid and end up liking them someday. I had to leave. I couldn't do anything if I was becoming one of them. I had to stay distant; it was the only way my plan would work.

The next morning – or at least I thought it was morning when I woke up – something put me on guard, and I listened attentively to the… silence. There was no noise, no comforting sound of deep breathing, no Uncle Jeb's snoring.

I felt around with my hand towards the place where I remembered leaving a flashlight last night, and I found it. I turned it on and let the spotlight dance around the cave. I was alone. I took in a deep breath and scowled. Now what? What was I supposed to do? Sit down and wait, or take the matters into my own hands? What did they _expect_ me to do?

Wasting good batteries was not really a solution. The humans had to be careful with their supplies, and I wouldn't be looked on with good eyes if I wasted them. Hesitantly I ventured outside into the corridor. I didn't run into anyone until I reached the level above, and when I did the humans didn't look surprised to see me alone. No one attacked me or even glared at me. Wanda had tamed them well.

Sharon gave me a half-suspicious look when I entered the kitchen. Behind her Trudy greeted me with a smile and started to fill me a plate for breakfast. She saw the way I looked distastefully at the granola bar that was supposed to be some sort of dessert, and after giving it a second thought, she replaced it with a raw carrot.

"Better?" She grinned.

"Yes, thank you."

I took a seat and chewed on my food. Trudy was fussing around the counter, making some instant cream that she poured into cups, one for everyone. There had been no homemade desserts served for as long as I had been there as their prisoner-guest, and since her attempts to make conversation had been genuine I dared to ask:

"What's the occasion?"

"Sharon and Doc are going to have a baby." She smiled. It was a little strained. "Isn't it great?"

"Yeah," I mumbled and looked down into my plate. Why would anyone want to make babies in a world where your own species was hunted down, and there was no chance for them to have a normal life? Were they doing it for the continuation of the species? Humans weren't that generous; they had to have more selfish reasons.

Trudy looked like she would have liked to share her thoughts on the matter, but she didn't know me well enough to pour her heart out.

I took my dish to the sink and considered offering to help Trudy wash them, but only for a moment. I didn't like to wash dishes.

"Wanda said she'd be on the field on the east side if you care to join her."

For the first time since I arrived, I was offered a choice. I nodded, relieved that I was excused from washing the dishes, though I didn't like working on the field much either. "I'll go to her then."

I fully intended to do that when I left the kitchen. Wanda's presence provided some sort of security, disregarding my belief that it was a false impression. But I had another idea.

"Were is Matt?" I turned to ask before walking out of the kitchen.

It was the only place where I felt safer, by his side. It was like he had the control of life and death over me. Another false impression, I knew that.

It made sense. It was probably even more dangerous when the sun came out and the rock started to dry. What didn't make much sense was that my feet led me to the sleeping quarters instead of the field.

In the deserted area, I heard the two voices loud and clear before I was able to see the owners.

"Can you see it?"

"It goes from here to here… but I can't reach it."

I looked at the two men, one holding a rather improvised ladder and the other one standing on top and pointing at the ceiling with a long iron bar, and found the sight funny for some reason.

I think I even chuckled 'cause Ian waved the bar at me. "Hey, Starry!"

Matt looked at me as if asking what the hell I was doing there.

"Hey," I replied faintly. This had been a bad idea.

"Did you sleep well?" Ian continued to be the friendly one.

"Yeah… thanks." I smiled a little, not clarifying if I was thanking him for asking or for letting me sleep in late.

"This isn't good." Ian went back to his work and poked the ceiling with the bar. He had to hold it by the very end because of the distance and therefore he couldn't put much force in the blow. "Did you hear that? The hollowness? It's just like in the other room. This portion – " he circled a small section right next to an opening, " – is going to fall soon. We need to tear it down before it falls onto someone's head."

They exchanged a look. "We need to get someone up there," Matt said.

"The ladder won't hold both of us," Ian said.

"Maybe Jamie…"

"The girls won't even want to hear about it." They both knew he was right, and I tended to agree. The kid had to be left out of this potentially dangerous situation that was more fit for adults.

"I can go up there," I heard myself saying.

Matt's eyes narrowed at me, becoming stone cold, but it was Ian who spoke. "Starry, we're not letting you out." And it was final.

I didn't even blink. "I can go through the inside, I can climb on the wall. Do you have any rock climbing equipment?"

They frowned, then Ian chuckled. "Now why haven't we thought about that?"

"Because it will damage the walls?" I allowed myself a little smirk.

"I doubt Brandt will mind. He even said something about needing more light," Ian remembered. "I'll go bring what equipment we have." He started climbing down the ladder.

I waited patiently and looked up the walls. This portion at the center-left seemed solid enough and the arch at the top was going to allow a close investigation of the ceiling from a semi-secure position.

Matt kept watching me instead, and I was very tempted to ask him what I did wrong _now_ when I was just _trying_ to help.

"Have you done this before?" His direct question put an end to my decision to ignore him.

"Yes, I've been hiking often." Not exactly the truth, but not necessarily a lie either. I knew what I was doing. "If I can get to that point – " I showed him what I planned, " – I can see most cracks from close."

"You won't get that far."

"Depends." I didn't agree right away. "How thick is the rock layer on top?"

"Not thick enough," he grunted.

Right, since it was falling down…

Ian came with his arms full of equipment and together we sorted the items I could use from the rest. Still, it was Matt who helped me put on the harness and handed me the rope. No shoes fit my size, so I would have to go barefoot to save my sandals.

"Don't try playing the hero," Ian lectured me. "If you feel it doesn't hold you, come down, do you understand?"

"Yep." I nodded, eyeing the wall and estimating its strength.

"We're running low on No Pain," he warned me.

I waved a hand for him to get off my case, and I drilled the first bolt in. Ian was holding onto the rope for me, and I advanced slowly making sure at each step that I was well anchored. The ceiling was about twelve meters above the ground, and it took a while to get there. The rock was terribly hard to drill into and smooth, with no ledges big enough to grab onto with my hands or support my legs.

"You might want to move to the side," I called out once I got to the top.

I was hanging almost at the horizontal, which was the only way I was able to reach more of the ceiling surface, holding a small hammer they had given me. If they thought about the possibility of me using it as a weapon, and I'm sure at least Matt did, they didn't let it show. After all, us Souls abhorred violence. I poked at the rock, starting from around the existing openings and towards the cracks in them. A few small rocks became detached and fell on one side. The rest remained intact.

"Careful there…"

Ian barely had time to finish the words when a large compact portion of the ceiling broke, turning the two original cracks into one big hole, sending a huge clump of rock crashing down to the ground. The curses coming from below let me know that I had missed my chance of seriously injuring Matt. Well, I had told him to stay away. I ignored it, trying to reach out and hold with my fingers onto the rough edges of the opening. With a little effort, I estimated I might be able to squeeze my upper body through it.

"Stop."

The barked order made me freeze with my arm outstretched into the air. I could feel a pale ray of sunshine warm up my fingers.

"Do not try to pull your head outside."

Matt's voice was ice cold, and I couldn't hold back a shudder. I hadn't intended to escape right away, though a quick look outside and a breath of fresh air couldn't hurt. So close. Maybe this rotten mountain was supposed to become my tomb, and I was never going to see the light of day again.

But that's all it took, a brief moment of distraction. It was too late when I felt the wall giving up under my weight. Ian and Matt shouted at me to hold on, but hold on onto what? If I had disobeyed Matt's order, then now I could have gripped securely onto the edge and prevented the fall.

The way things were I had no other option than give in to gravity when the anchor slid out, and my head hit the hard wall with a thump that made me see bright colors. My hair pulled back in a ponytail absorbed a small fraction of the impact, but otherwise my silver Soul buried in the back of my neck would have probably ended up being crushed; I wasn't wearing any head protection gear because they were all men-sized and therefore too big for me.

"Shit!"

"I'm going after her."

I felt someone tugging at the rope.

"Don't…" I croaked, still keeping my eyes closed. No point if both of us fell, was there? "Just give me a minute…"

It took longer than a minute, maybe two, while I hung upside down checking my antennas. They tended to snap in conditions of high stress, and I had lived my entire life with stress. I didn't know how to live otherwise. There it was, the little thing had snapped in two. I grimaced at the thought that it was going to take a while to grow it back. I extracted the broken filament from its location and replaced it with an unused one. My body contorted in pain as I did that. I couldn't imagine any torture more painful than having an insertion done with an awake Host. That's why we sedated them before the procedure.

"What's she doing?" Ian murmured. Matt probably just shrugged 'cause I heard him call out, "Starry, are you alright?"

"Yes." My answer was loud and clear. My vision cleared and the dizziness had passed. I was fully functional again. I pulled myself up and started to climb down with confident moves.

"Wow, that was just like Terminator." Ian seemed amazed.

Strong hands grabbed me while I was still in the air and set me gently on the ground, then continued to look for injuries. They belonged to Ian. Matt was standing right beside us with his fists clenched tight.

"I'm fine." I swatted Ian's hands away.

"Are you sure?" He didn't look too convinced. "You looked in pain up there." He sounded concerned. "Wanda will have my head if I let anything happen to you."

"It was just a broken filament. It will grow back." I let them think I wasn't in full control yet. I twisted my neck and I heard a pleasant crack. "I thought _he_ was my guardian." I nodded towards Matt.

He frowned again but Ian chuckled, "He's the big bad brute, I'm the friendly one." It was for the first time that I saw Matt roll his eyes.

"The good cop, bad cop routine?" I smirked.

"You know about that?" Ian was really surprised.

"I like old movies," I said.

"Even the violent ones?" he wondered.

"Well, I'll never be a horror fan. Of course, I prefer comedies." I was tough, but I wasn't made of stone. "Should we go? Have you checked all the rooms?"

"No more climbing for you today!" Ian and Matt said in the same time and I blinked. Why? It had been fun, most of it anyway.

"It's time for lunch. Let's go join the girls," Ian suggested to distract me. He couldn't stay away from Wanda for long, of course.

I accepted this because the bolts and anchors remained attached to the wall. And I knew where they kept the rope.


	6. Chapter 6

~ 6 ~

The day had started with a scream, and everyone jumped up, instantly on alert. No, we weren't under attack, but Leah had sworn she'd seen some kind of rodent on her way to the Main Plaza, and that was almost just as bad. If one of those small fur balls got into their crops or storage area, it would be as if a famine settled in.

Groups of two or three people were formed and each was assigned an area of the caves. It was no surprise that Matt and I were sent into a labyrinth of narrow corridors, too small to be regularly used. Judging by the amount of light that flooded in from the cracks in the ceiling, they appeared to be close to the sky.

I had expressed my reluctance to deal with rodents, even if we were just supposed to capture the ones we found, so for once Matt was walking ahead of me and sweeping the floor with the flashlight. It would have been naïve to assume there was just one rodent, and it only happened to be visiting. Chances were there was at least one family who'd found refuge in the caves from the blasted rain. If the babies ever left the nest, we'd be facing an epidemic.

It was a tedious job, since we couldn't afford to leave a rock unturned or a corridor unchecked. It took us several hours. We ate energy bars and drank water as we walked, determined not to stop until we finished our task and could declare the labyrinth rodent free.

From a personal point of view, I liked those twisted, narrow corridors. They were full of places to hide, perfect for someone like me who was determined to run away one day. I thought about playing a trick on Matt just to get some laughs, but he wouldn't have found it funny. The man had no sense of humor. I had never heard him laugh.

Talking to him was hard too. I was weary to mention the past because I had a strong feeling he'd lived through some traumatic experience he blamed the Souls for. It was the only way I could explain his aimed hatred towards me. I had no Human past to share, not one that I remembered, and I doubted he'd be interested on life on other planets. Wanda had told them way too many stories already.

The other alternative I had was to ask him about the life in the caves. That, however, could make him more suspicious. It was clear to me that even now he didn't trust me. The others showed less reluctance to do so, however. Two weeks had been enough for them to treat me with some kindness; I appreciated that from them, but I received no trust from him. That wasn't going to change soon either, and I wasn't going to be around long enough to make that happen, even if I didn't see why I would bother. They would have to set me free eventually; they didn't look to be the type that would keep Souls for a while just to kill them later on. From the little stories I had overheard, I thought I was closer to discovering their little secret, and killing me was far from it.

The way I saw it, silence was probably the only thing that didn't bother him, so I gave him plenty of that.

We walked until we reached several dead ends and there was no sighting of the deadly rodent. It was a waste of time. What would an animal do in these tunnels without a source of water, food, and no light? They were smarter than that and would leave soon enough.

It had to be late afternoon when Matt declared the hunt over. My feet hurt like hell from all that walking; it felt like we had walked kilometers, and my sandals hadn't been made for that. We still kept our eyes open on the way back in case we ran into the enemy, but no such luck. The glory belonged to others, as we soon found out.

"We caught it!" Jamie screamed at us happily when he saw us approaching the main square. He was coming our way, accompanied by his sister and Jared.

"Yay," I said mockingly and wondered what they were going to do with the poor creature. Release it, I hoped.

My barely whispered remark was covered up by a louder cracking noise that caught my attention. It didn't seem to fit in those surroundings and, while not totally unfamiliar, before I could realize what it was, Matt was yelling at Jamie, "Stay there!" His palm connected hard with my chest, sending me flying. Later I was going to think that if he hadn't wasted time saving me, maybe he would have escaped with less damage. But in the moment, I only had time to be surprised by how strong he was, as one wouldn't have guessed it just by looking at his lean figure, until the back of my head and entire back connected with the wall behind me, and I promptly passed out.

I woke up with a groan, and as my eyes started to get used to the darkness I realized I was sitting in an awkward position with my back pressed against the wall. Good thing my body was built to replace the snapped antennas, seeing as it was an automatic function, even when I was unconscious because three more were broken. Ouch. That wince brought to my attention another jarring pain in my right shoulder. I had had my share of battles, enough to estimate that it wasn't broken, just popped out of the joint. Wasn't this going to be fun?

I whimpered, feeling disorientated, and I patted the wall around me with my left hand. I soon found the corner, which helped me visualize my position in the corridor. Another step to the left, and I would have probably broken my neck upon impact. To the right, piles of rocks were sitting atop one another; this must have been what crashed down.

Now that I had my eyes open for a good couple of minutes, I could start to make out shapes, but I still needed a flashlight. Come to think of it, where _was_ the flashlight? That thought encouraged me to move and, with great care, I pulled myself to a standing position. My shoulder hurt, but if I didn't use the joint, it was close to bearable.

Holding an arm outstretched like a blind man, I took a few tentative steps forward. My hand didn't encounter anything, but my toe did, and I felt something soft tickle my foot. "Matt?" That had to be his head, I reckoned. I was glad he wasn't awake.

I lowered myself on my knees and crawled by his side, continuing to pat around with my fingers. I found his head, his shoulders, his chest, his arms, both in one piece, his belt, his hips, and I noticed, disconcerted, that at about mid-thigh I met a wall of massive. His legs were trapped underneath. I shuddered, thinking at the condition they had to be in. Was he still alive?

My hand flew fast to his neck to check for a pulse. At first I had a hard time finding it, but it was there, although weak. I leaned my head closer and his breath faintly brushed my face. He was alive. But for how long? I was no Healer, but I knew the basics of first aid. I needed to know the extent of his injuries and see what I was doing, though. I felt around with my hands in hope that the flashlight might have survived, but all I found was shreds of plastic and broken glass. That meant there was no light except for what was coming from above through some narrow cracks in the ceiling, but that wasn't enough to help. It was starting to get dark outside too; how long had I been out?

"Matt?" I called again, not really expecting an answer.

Since he was unconscious, I went to the wall that the fallen rocks had created. Maybe there was a crack, an opening to get to the other side to bring help. But wouldn't have the others found it by now and come through? They knew we were there and, if not for me, they would have come for him. That idea gave me hope; they had to be working on it right that moment. I started to feel a little more discouraged, however, as my hands trailed the rest of the rock wall. It ran from one side of the corridor to the other and was taller than me, stretching to the ceiling. This was going to take some time, time Matt may or may not had have.

"Hello? Anyone?" I called out in vain. No answer.

I sat back down on his left side, my thigh touching his arm, and I ran my hands over his body again. I couldn't find any open wounds on his head or torso, and my fingers remained dry until I reached his thighs where they were cut off. Assuming there was no internal bleeding, his spine wasn't broken, and he only sported a mild concussion, what was left to worry about were his legs. Crushed. Broken no doubt. _Open fractures?_ I wondered. The blood put up a pretty convincing argument for that, but I couldn't remember how he'd fallen; I hadn't seen it. I must have passed out just before that. My thoughts debated on whether I should assume the worst and take the appropriate measures just in case, and I decided it couldn't hurt.

I had to stop the eventual bleeding. With what? Something to tie around his thigh. His belt. I fumbled over it to undo it.

"Are you having fun?" Matt croaked out of the blue, startling me.

He couldn't be serious; I was so not thinking about _that_. I wondered if he was delirious from the loss of blood. "No," I grumbled pulling on the belt to set it loose. It wasn't easy to do it with one hand, since any sudden move sent spikes of pain in the opposite shoulder. "How are your legs?"

"They hurt." His answer was short and totally useless.

"The corridor collapsed, and you pushed me out of the way, but you got trapped underneath," I reminded him in case his memory was blurry.

"Did the kid escape?"

"I don't know. I haven't seen Jamie yet, so I don't think he got trapped too." I _hoped _he hadn't been caught by the crash. "Are you bleeding?"

"I… can't tell."

"Tell me which leg hurts the most." I had finally managed to free the belt from underneath him.

"The left one."

I tied the belt around his left thigh, pulling on it until I heard him grunt from the pain and pressure. Retrieving my own belt was much easier, and I tied that one around his other leg. It was all I could do for him at the moment. I wasn't even sure that Heal would have helped, not without having the bones aligned by a Healer first. No Pain damn well would have been good at that point, but of course there was none around.

I grimaced because of my own pain, and I was grateful for the darkness so he couldn't see my discomfort. He shifted slightly in place, grunting in pain, and then I felt him relax next to me.

"Don't fall asleep," I instructed him. "You need to stay awake. Talk to me." Silence. Maybe he didn't _want _to talk to me. What would he have to say? "Tell me how much you hate me." I smirked into the dark. "You might not get another chance." That should get him talking.

Was that a snort? "Why do you hate _me_?" he answered with another question.

"I'm a Soul, I don't hate anyone." I gave him the default answer.

"But you…" – he tried to find the appropriate word – "_dislike_ me."

"It's hard to like someone who looks like he'd happily throttle you," I replied. "I'm a Soul, not a saint."

"But you don't mind playing one."

"I'm far from it," I chuckled quietly. "I'm simply being practical. If it keeps you alive and awake, you can throw any words my way that you want. They don't hurt."

"Are you sure?"

It was my turn to think about the answer. "OK, maybe they do." I sighed and rested my back against the fallen rocks. "I'll just assume you're delirious already." I shrugged. "I don't expect anything good from your part anyway." That statement sounded mean to my own ears and I winced. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that," I apologized.

He seemed to consider my answer. "You're not like Wanda… or her friend…"

"I suppose we're all different in some ways," I said carefully, "like you Humans are."

"You don't sound surprised."

"You can't judge someone by the characteristics of their species. Aberrations from the standard are always a possibility."

"So you're not afraid of us."

"You're wrong. I am," I murmured. I ran my fingers through my hair. "It's not a pleasant feeling to have… but it kept me alive."

"Wanda was terrified when she first arrived, and Sunny still is to some degree." He refused to let it drop.

"Like I said, we're not identical… and maybe I'm just insane." I shrugged. Now that was an idea.

"Can Souls become insane?" he wondered.

"Dunno. If Humans can be civilized, then why can't Souls be insane?" I reasoned.

"You're not as nice as them, but I don't think you're insane."

"I'm confused. Is that supposed to be an insult or a compliment?" I chuckled.

"I don't know. I think I'm running a fever," he said, finding an excuse.

My hand shot out to touch his forehead and check. His skin burned underneath my palm, sending goosebumps up my arm, but the rest of his forehead was covered in cold sweat, and a light shiver shook his limbs. He was getting into shock; oh, shit.

"How are you feeling?" I asked, a pointless question. The only possible answer was "bad."

"My legs are getting numb."

That couldn't be good, right? I touched his leg helplessly. At least with the numbing, the pain would lessen too, and I found a weak consolation in that. My hand returned back up to his torso and ran into his arms, which were crossed on his chest. They were sweaty and clammy. Keep him warm! But how? All I had was my body, and I couldn't even lie along him because there was no room to do it.

Wasn't I glad that I used to practice gymnastics? I propped my good hand onto the ground and pulled myself up so I could straddle him.

"This isn't an appropriate time to take advantage of me," he gritted between clenched teeth.

Ha! The Human _did _have an odd sense of humor.

"Shut up," I mumbled as I forced his arms open so I could rest on his chest. My injured arm was trapped from where it pressed into his stomach, and there was nothing I could do about that; but my other arm was propped onto the floor next to him, trying to support at least some of my weight.

His arms remained raised in the air for several long moments like he didn't know what to do with them. Then he gently laid them across my back, embracing me.

"This is as far as I'm willing to go, so don't get any funny ideas," I muttered, tensing slightly.

Laughter echoed quietly deep inside his chest. A man with his legs broken, taking advantage of a _worm_? That had to be the last thing on his mind. I could see the hilarity in that.

"Why are you so determined to save me?" he asked after another moment of silence. His tremors were subsiding, though not fast enough for my liking.

"I don't like talking to corpses," I deadpanned.

"Corpses can't hurt you," he murmured. His hand moved lightly, caressing my back and leaving burning trails underneath the fabric of my shirt.

"I'll take my chances," I whispered.

For a while I concentrated on stabilizing him, ignoring how the contact with his body made me feel, and worrying because I felt him slipping away. His pulse was accelerating and his breathing became ragged; his arms were loosening around me, losing strength. I was running out of ideas on how to help him.

He was too far gone, gritting his teeth to keep the moans of pain from escaping when I heard faint thumps coming from somewhere above. I lifted my head to look up, and a water drop fell on my forehead. Outside had to be rainy again; water slipped in through the cracks in the ceiling. The back of my shirt was quickly becoming wet.

First dust fell over us, a reddish curtain I couldn't see through but I felt covering and sticking to me like a second skin. Then small rocks started to fly out of the wall and I stretched as much as I could to cover as much of him as possible. I wrapped my arm around his head and buried his face against my good shoulder. He was injured enough the way he was, and I could take a few more hits anyway.

A big stone banged out of place and hit the ground with a huge clunk, and we heard a voice call, "Starry! Matt! Are you there?"

"Jamie…" I breathed a sigh of relief. Our salvation was close. More rocks fell. "Stop! Stop tearing down the wall. It's falling on us. We're right underneath you. Matt's legs are trapped under the rocks and I can't move him," I explained quickly.

The rain stopped. I got up and approached the rocks so he could hear me better. Matt had stopped reacting minutes ago.

"Uhh, sorry…" Jamie's voice came out muffled. "I can't see you. I'm about fifteen inches from the edge and I barely made a small hole. It's really crowded in here, I had to dig the past three feet or so to squeeze in."

"It's OK, Jamie, don't worry, we're fine." I hurried to assure him, but my mind was racing. If he'd found it difficult to pass, then an adult would never fit through. "We won't be able to get Matt out the way you came though. He's stuck here and out for good."

"Well, they're digging at the bottom already, and they're halfway through, I think. It's hard because the tunnel keeps collapsing so it's gonna take a while to get to you."

"OK, we're not going anywhere. Just tell them we're in the middle of the corridor and a little over a meter under."

"I will…" I heard some shuffling that signaled that he was retreating.

"Jamie?"

The noise stopped.

"Yeah?"

"How large is the hole you made towards the end?" I inquired.

"It's really small. A flashlight won't fit through it. I thought about it,"" he sounded rather proud that he had.

"How about some No Pain then? And ask Doc if Heal might work too!"

"OK, I will. I'll be back!"

It took him over half an hour to return. Matt slipped in and out of consciousness, with all my assurances that medicine and help were on the way.

"Incoming!" Jamie announced and sent something flying over to us. It was small and light, and it hit me in the head, then bounced around on the ground next to me. "Doc said to give him all of it. It'll hold him over until we get to you. I have to go 'cause my weight is dislodging rocks underneath," he said in a rush.

"OK!"

I found the small plastic bag and touched Matt's face with my fingers. "Open up…" I pulled on his lips and his chin to make him open his mouth. He groaned. "Jamie brought the medicine," I told him, "and you have to swallow it. Everything will stop hurting."

I felt him allow his facial muscles to relax so he could unclench his jaw, and I dumped the content of the bag, mostly powder by the feel of it, into his mouth. His lips were dry and he seemed to choke from the dryness for a bit, but we had run out of water before we even got caught in this mess. I wiped my hands on my thighs and held them cupped under the weak drops of leftover rainwater that fell from above. Once a few drops gathered in my palms, I poured the meager bit of water into his mouth.

"It's going to be better soon," I promised, rubbing his shoulder comfortingly.

His relief started a few heartbeats later; I could almost follow its progress as he slowly became more attentive and conscious. His next action was more than unexpected. His hands shot up to grip my head and bring me to him. I panicked and struggled to set myself free, but that didn't stop him from crushing his lips to mine. As I gasped in shock, he took advantage and plunged his tongue into my mouth.

It took me a moment to realize what he was doing. He'd swallowed the medicine, but the residue left in his mouth he was willing to share. His tongue rubbed against mine, our saliva mixing together and bringing the medicine into my mouth. The exhilarated feeling usually associated with the intake of No Pain was spreading through my body, but the soft buzz that spread through my system wasn't only caused by the medicine. The pain in my shoulder lessened to a more bearable degree and with more newfound freedom in my movements, I arched my back and kissed him harder, needing more… needing more _what_? I wasn't sure. I just knew that I needed this, and my traitorous body sang happily as it pressed into him.

We were both breathing heavily when we parted for air, and with a huge effort full of restraint, I pulled myself away from him abruptly and moved far enough away to avoid touching him. I leaned against the wall, pulled my legs up, and hugged them tightly to my chest with my good arm, trying to stop the shivers. My first kiss since I had come to this planet, and it had to be like this. I shook my head and let my forehead rest on my knees. Things were going from bad to worse.

Matt didn't apologize. "I didn't mean to hurt you. I wanted to help. You're injured too," he said simply.

I shrugged my shoulders into the darkness and rolled my eyes, aware that he couldn't see me. "Thanks," I mumbled. I couldn't agree with his technique of applying the treatment, no matter how efficient it turned out to be, since the kiss unsettled me.

"What did Jamie say?" His tone was once again brief and practical. Part of me regretted I had given him the medicine. I liked him better when he was vulnerable and not so much in control, like now.

"They're digging up a tunnel. It's slow because of the danger that the rocks will collapse, but they'll make it." All we had to do was wait now. "How are you feeling?"

"Still cold." He made it sound like it was my fault somehow.

I sighed and crawled back to him. His arms opened invitingly, and without a word I laid over his chest, favoring my right side. I looked up through the cracks in the ceiling, and I thought I saw a glint of a shining star. It was night. One of Matt's arms wrapped loosely around my middle while the other ran its fingers through my hair. I had to force myself not to pull away. He felt me tense and ran his hand along my back soothingly. Who was comforting whom now?

The hand playing with my hair slid along my jaw and down my neck. I couldn't help thinking how easily it would be for him to just squeeze or press down with that large hand, and that would be the end of me. I might have shivered, but I didn't know.

Long fingers gently turned my head and guided my lips to meet his. I was shivering inside, but we both were steady on the outside. Our lips met in a much calmer kiss. Full and long and sweet, the kiss turned the shiver inside of me into a flutter down low in my belly, and I didn't recognize the sound I made, a sound of yearning for more. The kiss broke, only to be followed by another one. There was nowhere to go and nothing to do, so we kissed again and again, until I lost count who was kissing who.

It was the thumping coming from outside the rocky mass that made me become aware of my surroundings again. The sound was heavy, strong, and sounded close. Soon Matt winced, and I guessed they had gotten to his legs. It didn't take long until they fully broke through. A small ray of light passed between the rocks, blinding me. Before I closed my eyes, I saw the light reflected from the silver behind my eyes dancing on the wall in front of me.

"Everyone still alive?" Jared's head popped out.

"More or less," Matt replied.

"Good. We have to hurry 'cause this won't hold." He kept working as he spoke, cutting and tossing the rock fragments out. There was some movement behind him as someone cleared the path he'd made.

I helped getting the smaller stones out of the way. Matt did his best to help too.

"This is what are we going to do," Jared told me. "I've got a stretcher over here, and we're sliding it under Matt. Then I'm going back, pulling it after me, and you're following right behind, understood?"

I nodded shortly. Things might have been different if I hadn't happen to agree with his plan, but it sounded reasonable for me to do so anyway. Getting Matt on the stretcher was a bit more complicated. Thankfully, since he had preserved the full use of his arms and upper body, he managed to elevate himself off of the ground long enough for Jared to slide the stretcher under him while I gently held his legs up. There was not enough room for Jared to turn around, and crawling over Matt was not a time saving option since he was a big guy, so Jared had to go back backwards. I saw he had a harness around his shoulders tied to the stretcher, which allowed him to drag it after him, leaving his arms free.

As instructed, I went on all fours and entered the low tunnel as soon as Matt's head disappeared inside. I was smaller than them so I had no problem with that. My shoulder was protesting, though, and not putting too much weight on my bad arm made me look like a three-legged dog.

The tunnel didn't collapse on top of us like we'd feared. We made it to the other side in one piece, and we were welcomed by Jamie, who was covered in red dust and scratches but still smiling. The stretcher was immediately picked up by the O'Shea brothers to carry Matt to the hospital. I followed at a much slower place until Melanie elbowed Jared, and he lifted me up in his arms.

"I can walk," I protested and winced, since the bad shoulder was resting against him.

"It's not often that Mel lets me get close to a pretty girl, so I better take advantage of it." He smirked, refusing to put me down.

Melanie just rolled her eyes and laughed. But she did keep close to us all the way to the hospital. I guess she didn't trust him _that _much.

When we arrived, Doc was preparing to fix Matt's legs while Candy was handling the medicine. I turned my head so I wouldn't have to watch. I had been fortunate enough not to have experienced any broken bones in this body, but I had witnessed a few accidents, and I really didn't need to see the condition of Matt's legs. I simply passed by Candy on my way to an empty cot, and I discreetly took the Sleep container and placed it in her hand. Her nod was barely visible, and not even two minutes later Matt was asleep, letting Doc do his job in peace. I could bet Matt wasn't going to like that we had knocked him out. Oh, well. I was too tired to care about his moods.

"Look." Jamie approached me, holding a jar in which a rat with a long tail resided. "I told you we caught it." He grinned.

"Oh." It was all I could say as I watched the animal with curiosity. It was bigger and furrier than a regular mouse, which I didn't even like to begin with.

"Jared caught it." He seemed anxious to tell me the whole story; everyone else must have heard it already. "He didn't use a rock, or a trap. He just caught it with his bare hands. It was awesome!" He beamed and looked up at his hero, who was standing only a few steps away with his arms wrapped around Melanie.

"What are you going to do with it?"

"We were going to release it outside this evening, but then the tunnel collapsed and…" Jamie shrugged since I knew the rest.

"We'll do it tomorrow," Jared promised. The kid wasn't allowed to go outside by himself, I reasoned.

"Did you give him anything to eat? Some water maybe?" I inquired.

"Uhh… no…" Jamie gave me a sheepish look. "Mel, we need to feed it," he said in a whiny voice.

"Well, you're a big boy, who's stopping you?" she teased him.

"What do you think it would like to eat?" he whispered towards me, and I suddenly felt like we were both conspiring against his older sister.

"Any kind of vegetables will do," I asserted and pretended to lower my voice too. "I think I've seen some unguarded carrots in Uncle Jeb's garden."

"Wanda!" Jamie jumped up. "Come on, we've got a mission to accomplish!" He tossed the jar into Melanie's arms, and he grabbed Wanda's hand, stealing her from Ian's side.

The room was starting to clear. It was getting late, and instead of standing around and feeling useless, people preferred to sleep. Only Jared, Melanie and Ian remained. Periodically Doc informed us about the progress of the operation. It could have been much worse, and surgery wasn't needed. Still, it was past midnight before he was done.

I felt a hand on my shoulder, and I winced.

"Are you alright?" Doc asked me.

"Can you take one more patient?" I smiled faintly.

"Sure. What's wrong?"

"My shoulder popped out of its socket, and it needs to be put back."

"Oh, okay." His skilled fingers prodded at my shoulder. "When did it happen?"

"When the tunnel collapsed." I knew what he was thinking – that this would have been more effective if done right away and not several hours after – but there hadn't been anyone around to do it, and Matt's situation seemed to be more critical than mine.

He touched it some more, watching for my signs of discomfort, and he called to Ian, "Come here and hold her still."

Ian positioned himself behind me, and another pair of hands was placed on me at Doc's orders. I wasn't used to being touched so much, and I was starting to feel uncomfortable. But I clenched my teeth and bared it. It was going to be over soon.

My scream when the ball popped back into the socket startled Melanie and Jared, who were on their way out of the room. Matt stirred on his cot.

"Dear girl, you didn't take a No Pain?" Candy asked in motherly fashion.

"I…" I couldn't find the strength to shrug the way I felt inclined to do. My forehead was covered in sweat, and tears had burst out of my eyes, but the worst part was over. Doc had done a good job, and the pain was already receding. With a little more attention from Doc, I was going to be as good as new.

Doc shook his head, probably wondering what I was trying to prove while lasting these injuries. Meanwhile, Candy handed me some more No Pain along with a glass of water.

"Can I sleep here tonight?" I asked when I finally recovered my breath and my voice stopped shaking. "I don't want Matt to try to get up and go looking for me when he wakes up." I glanced in Matt's direction. "He takes his job way too seriously."

Ian started to laugh.


	7. Chapter 7

~ 7 ~

Matt could only stand to be in the hospital for exactly two days. It seemed to be everyone's limit. Except when Wanda dragged me to accompany her this place and that, I spent much of the time hanging around the hospital and trying to make myself useful, while trying not to annoy him too much. He was back to his pre-accident 'hate the Soul' attitude, so I was careful not to cross him within those two days. That was easily done, if I kept myself busy.

I discovered that one thing I could do was fix the holes in torn clothes. I myself didn't remember previously doing such a task, but it was obvious that my Host apparently did. So I spent hours sitting on a cot with my legs crossed under me and piles of damaged clothes surrounding me on both sides.

With Matt well-set on the path to recovery, Doc saw no reason to guard us much. He and Candy periodically took turns visiting us along with some other Human, but most of the time he spent in a room right off of the hospital. I thought it was some sort of storage room where they might be working on something. But of course just speculating wasn't enough for a person like me, so I had to see it for myself.

So the first time we were left alone and Matt was asleep, I snuck into the other room. They were working on something, though not what I expected. Two bodies lay there seemingly asleep, or maybe even comatose. IVs were attached to their arms, and I scratched the crook of mine unconsciously.

They were both men, young and well fit. I had met all the members in this small community, and I had a good memory for faces, but I was pretty sure I hadn't seen them before. Were they sick? Another cave accident, perhaps? They looked fine, if the empty expressions on their faces were ignored.

I shuddered when the realization hit me: the cryotanks placed like headstones beside them weren't empty like the ones in the hospital's main room. I opened one just to make sure, and I smiled sympathetically at the silvery, glittery, poor Soul resting inside, unaware of what was going on. I reasoned that it was alive, since most Souls would have turned the Human brain to mush, destroying themselves along with the Hosts so the barbarian Humans wouldn't catch them. Only those like me, or still in contact with their Hosts, survived.

As their plan unfolded before my eyes, I closed the lid and tapped my fingers lightly on top of the cryotank. Freeing Humans without killing Souls; I was impressed. Wanda must have showed them how to do it. How many Humans knew our secret _now_? Had they told others? That wasn't good, and it could become a serious problem if more and more Humans found out and started attacking us. But they had used the cryotanks to save us, and that gave me hope.

I quietly left the room and returned to the hospital where Matt was waiting, awake.

"Is there any secret you _haven't_ found out yet?" he said sarcastically and gave me a stern look.

I didn't answer. I pushed away the clothes that still needed to be sewed, and I curled up on my cot without saying a word. I needed to think first before I could discuss any of it.

After the first twenty-four hours of convalescence, Matt was up on his feet and walking around the room, using sticks for support. He wasn't fully healed yet, and the exercise tired him a great deal, but he insisted on doing it and didn't ask for No Pain, although it was obvious he wasn't comfortable at all. Candy scolded him for his foolishness and lack of patience, and only the threat of giving him some Sleep got him back on the cot where he did fall asleep, exhausted.

He was still sleeping when Sunny brought us lunch.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I meant to come and get it, but I lost the track of time," I apologized and jumped up to take the tray from her.

"That's alright, I don't mind." She smiled shyly and placed the food on the table. "He's asleep?" She nodded towards Matt.

"Yeah, he's tired." And sleep was preferable to my company.

"He scares me…" she murmured.

I picked a lettuce leaf from my plate and gave it to the rodent, the third prisoner that shared our solitary confinement. "He's not that bad." I shrugged. It wasn't _her_ that was the target of his murderous glares, and if he'd gone so long without killing _me,_ I reckoned she was safe.

Sunny nodded, not entirely convinced, and started for the exit. But there she stopped and looked back. "Umm… can I ask you something?"

"Yes, of course." I followed her outside into the corridor, where we could talk without whispering. "What is it?"

"How are things outside?"

"I'm not sure what you mean."

"I haven't left the caves since Kyle brought me here over a year ago. I miss it."

"Uhh…" I ran a hand through my hair. "Well, it's not like I've been out here lately either. Within the past year, things haven't changed much. It's the same world, same colors, same sun."

"I miss it all," she repeated. "I miss the world, the colors, the sun," she confessed.

"Why don't you both go out then? On a raid or something. I'm sure Kyle wouldn't mind." I had heard them making plans for a new one recently, so it was no secret.

"Oh, no, I couldn't do that." She shook her head, horrified. "I couldn't risk losing him. If he gets caught, he'll kill himself, and if he fails… then he won't be Kyle anymore. I've waited for him for so long… no, I can't lose him." She sounded almost desperate. "I love him."

"Oh, Sunny…" I sighed and, giving in to the impulse, I hugged her. She was only a little bit shorter than me, and we both looked younger than our Hosts' real ages, and we were both trapped here. "You won't lose him." A Human would have noticed the lack of faith in my voice, but she didn't.

"Thanks." She smiled.

"Lunch is getting cold!" Matt called impatiently. Maybe he didn't want us to talk alone for too long – two Souls plotting together against the Humans.

"Yes, Master," I grumbled and rolled my eyes. "I have to go," I told Sunny. "Thanks for bringing lunch."

I walked back inside and placed one tray in Matt's lap. I took my own plate and carried it to my cot.

He didn't start eating right away.

"You don't believe that," he said instead.

"What?" I looked up.

"That she won't lose him."

"Us Souls are such poor lairs." I smirked ironically.

He looked at me like he was still waiting for an answer.

I shrugged. "If he loves her, he won't do anything to hurt her. Including get himself killed."

"I think he does love her."

So did I. Something had to be wrong with the O'Shea brothers, something in their genes, because they had both fallen head over heels for Souls. How twisted was that?

"Love kills," I stated coldly and went back to my lunch.

It was his turn to give me a confused look.


	8. Chapter 8

~ 8 ~

Our solitary days over, we had to go back to work. Matt still was in pain at times because he had insisted to use his legs before these had completely healed, but he wasn't complaining and, most importantly, he was going to be fine. We were assigned easier tasks, that didn't require a huge load of effort, and frankly that left us with a little too much free time on our hands.

We still didn't talk much, but when we did our voices were less strained and, while I could still feel his eyes on me all the time wherever I was, something had changed. There was a barely visible hint of a smile in the corners of his mouth sometimes when he looked at me, and I didn't know what to make of it. It was as if he had a secret that amused him terribly. I tried to ignore him, just like I was always careful not to touch him because of the sparks that appeared when our skin came into contact with each other. It did annoy me a little. He seemed to notice it and he made sure to temper it down. And the occasional brush of hands or bumping into each other in the dark was always accidental. But it still annoyed me.

No other accidents took place in the following days. Things were calm and, before we knew it, another week had passed. We celebrated the survival by harvesting the wheat crop. Not very romantic, but then again days tended to blur one into another. They said it was the raining season. I said it was life in the caves.

It didn't rain that day, but the air was saturated with water and statics, making it hard to breathe. A storm was approaching. Although I had started working with the gloves I had been given, they were too big for me and slowing me down so after a while I discarded them in favor of working with my bare hands. It took me a while to understand why they preferred to work wearing gloves, until about the time when my palms started to itch faintly. By then there wasn't that much ground left to cover so I shut up and bared it.

I stood at the end of the field and drew in a deep breath as I watched people preparing to leave the room. I was in no hurry. Nothing special expected me outside of that particular room, same tasteless dinner, same uncomfortable cot, same loud snoring coming from Uncle Jeb's part. Boy, was I wrong.

I started walking slowly along the path that crossed the lot. With people ahead and a few left behind me, I didn't worry about getting lost. I could see their guiding lights dancing on the rocky walls. I should have checked where Matt was, but knowing that he was always close, I didn't. That's why it startled me when a hand grasped my wrist, just when I was rubbing my palm against the fabric of my pants covering my thigh, and I was dragged into a crease of the wall.

"What?" I gasped. I wanted to look up but the wall I was pressed against didn't allow the move, not that I would have seen much since his flashlight was off.

"Sst," a rumble echoed low in his chest that almost touched mine, "don't start snapping on me," he murmured closer to my face than I had realized, and I noticed that, although his hands were holding both of my wrists, he wasn't using his full force and wasn't hurting me. In that gentle hold, his hands travelled down to close around mine, his big warm palms making the itch increase on both sides of my skin, in and out.

"What is it?" I whispered, shaking lightly, and I'm afraid my voice was shaking too.

He chuckled quietly, probably amused by the way I was acting like a skittish cat, and as his breath brushed against my face, I felt his lips touch mine. Ah, this… We hadn't done anything like this since the day when the ceiling had collapsed on us, and then it had been… treatment. Yeah. But this, this was different.

It felt sort of like the last of the kisses we'd shared, only stronger. His lips molded against mine, distracting me, and when his hands pulled mine behind him, encouraging me to wrap them around his torso, they did. That's when his lips became bolder, pressing and tugging on mine, and when his mouth opened, I heard myself whimpering. This wasn't right. I felt under attack from inside and out, my body sidelining with the Human.

Intellectually I knew what was happening, but nothing in the decade spent using this Host had prepared me for it. I was like putty in his hands that cradled my head. I wanted more, and in the same time the conscious part of me, or whatever was left of it, feared that I had already given him too much, more than I could afford.

"Ahem…" a discreet cough called for our attention.

Matt stopped and took a small step back, turning partially. In the shadow thrown by his larger frame, I was blushing furiously.

"Do you mind if we steal her away for a little while?" Melanie, who wasn't the type to run around the bush when she wanted something, asked smirking.

Beside her, Wanda and Sunny grinned widely.

"May I come too?" he wondered.

"I'm afraid not. We're going for a pampering session in the bathing room. No men allowed," she declared.

Wanda giggled.

An amused smiled flew over his face, but otherwise he showed no emotion. Now that the brief moment of insanity had passed, I bet he liked them more than me, even if two of them were Souls just like me.

"She's all yours, ladies." Matt stepped aside, his hand waiting until the last moment to break contact with mine.

My eyes glanced over his features, and I couldn't find anything to say. Nor that I wanted to say anything in front of such an audience, so I pulled away from the wall and easily got into the rhythm, matching my pace with theirs once they started walking.

"So you like him?" Melanie barely waited for us to turn around the corner, making the question sound more like a statement.

"Who?" I blinked innocently, my thoughts wandering far away.

"Who?" she snorted rolling her eyes.

"Matt," Sunny filled in the blanks.

"No, I'm just playing with him," I deadpanned, not about to admit that he was the one playing with me. Wasn't he?

"Of course she likes him." Wanda's arm wrapped around me. "Matt is a nice guy."

I stared at her. "You need glasses."

"Great guy?" She chuckled.

"That's not what I meant," I grumbled. "Forget it."

"Hey, as long as you stay away from Jared…" Melanie gave me a friendly warning.

"And Ian…"

"And Kyle…"

You can guess who those voices belonged to.

"…you can have all the fun you like," Melanie finished.

"Really?" I muttered. She wouldn't have liked the kind of fun I had in mind.

But the girls had moved to something else, and the subject was dropped. The new highlights of the day were the two bars of soap, lilac and lavender scented, that someone had saved for special occasions and now had gotten into their possession. So we indulged in a long bath in the lukewarm water, chatting and splashing around for over an hour, while everyone else left earlier than that. I didn't see what their hurry was. It was evening already, and all we had to look forward to was dinner. Beah!

"Mel!" Jamie called out from outside at some point. He could have entered just as well, and he wouldn't have seen anything inappropriate because there was no light on. "Jared needs you to help him with something."

"Men," she grumbled, but the tenderness in her tone showed that she didn't mind. "I'm coming!"

The fun was over, we gathered our things and headed back to the game room, or sleeping room how I called it. I didn't recognize it at first when we got there. The cots and mattresses were pulled along the walls, there were lights and decorations hanging on strings that crossed the room above our heads, a buffet with delicacies on one side and, something I had missed the most during my detention time, music filled the air. People were dressed up nicely, and they all stopped from what they were doing and turned to smile at us when we entered.

"Oh…" Melanie was left with her jaw hanging.

Jared appeared from the crowd and walked to her with open arms. "Happy Birthday, sweetheart!"

"Jared!" she squealed and flew into his arms.

It was so romantic. And I'm not being sarcastic here.

"It's her birthday," Jamie whispered towards me, in case I hadn't figured that out yet. "Isn't this great?" He grinned up to his ears.

"Uh-huh…" I nodded to make him happy. It did look great indeed, like a surreal Christmas party, or a beach party. If I hadn't been awake, I would have thought that this was some sort of hallucination.

"For me?... Jared, you didn't!" Melanie was squeaking for a completely different reason now, and I turned my attention back to her.

Jared was holding a rather large but thin box, tied with a shiny ribbon, waiting for her to open it. She took the lid off and unveiled a pretty, red dress.

"No!" She gasped.

"Yes." Jared nodded smirking. "For me?" His eyebrows rose pleadingly.

"Eww…" She made a face, but even she had to give in to the appeal of the dress. "Well, since it's for you…" She sighed and took the box from him. "I'll be right back."

Wanda and Sunny were hurrying out to change too and, since it was obvious that everyone was making an effort to dress up for the party, I concluded that it was better if I at least tried to fit in. I didn't have an extended wardrobe to choose from. Beside the working clothes I had on, there was also the yellow jailish outfit I had been given upon my arrival there and, of course, the knee length white pants and short sleeve red top ensemble I had been wearing the day they kidnapped me. What can I say, it had been a very hot day. You can guess which one I chose.

I disappeared discreetly, and I had no problem finding a private spot where I could change. I wasn't surprised to discover that the pants clung less to my figure as I had lost some weight the last few weeks thank to the 'healthy' diet and daily exercise. What I worried more about was that no matter where I stood or sat, those pants were still going to get covered in a generous layer of red dust by the end of the evening. It made me wonder what that dust did to our lungs.

As I returned to the game room, I saw Wanda was wearing a pale blue dress that matched the color of her eyes, and Sunny's green dress didn't make her skin look sickening pale like it would have done to mine if I had been the one wearing it. But the real star was Melanie, blushing bright and throwing murderous glares at Jared, while people made her twirl around to show off her dress.

"My lioness." Jared finally took pity on her and took her in his arms.

Lioness? More like a wild cat, I thought.

"It's her star sign," Jamie told me.

He'd been the one who'd introduced me to life in the caves, being the most adaptable and the easiest to talk to, even if he was not a Soul. He seemed to like that role and took it very seriously. I was like his pet, though I might lose that quality now that he had Roddy. The rodent had a place of honor in the middle of the buffet table, and the poor thing had to be drowning in his own saliva seeing all those goodies around him and being unable to reach them.

"Star sign?" I had a vague idea of what he was talking about but, "It's not August yet."

"Uhh… Oops?" He made a funny face and ran off. Huh?

I couldn't go after him because Uncle Jeb approached me with a drink. "Ever had one of these?" He offered me the glass.

"What is it?" I sniffed at the content and quirked my nose.

"A cocktail, with a bit of something… try it, you might like it." The old man smiled, patted my shoulder and left.

Looking around, I noticed Wanda carrying something similar and, reckoning it couldn't be poison, I tentatively took a small sip. It burned down my throat, though not too bad, and from various books and movies I recognized the sensation as being caused by alcohol. Humans really didn't know how to take good care of themselves. It was a miracle they hadn't gone extinct long before we had found them.

The drink sent a soft buzz through my veins, reaching down to the tip of my toes. It was close to what I felt when Matt touched me, but far less satisfying. It wasn't that bad overall. I walked around, doing what would be called mingling I guess, and I settled down firmly next to the buffet table. There was enough food to feed twice as many people than those in the room and for once it actually looked and smelled rather appealing, so I set myself to work loading my plate with bits and pieces of just about everything.

"Whoah, there… someone's being hungry," Ian teased me as he passed by.

I shrugged, refusing to let him discourage my appetite. It was for the first time I enjoyed eating in a month. That thought made me remember what Jamie had said earlier. August? It couldn't be August, it had to be still July according to my calculations. I had been counting all the days that had passed; I couldn't have missed more than one or two maximum.

"Sunny, what date is today?" I asked the brunette, who had come with Kyle to refill their glasses. "I'd like to remember Mel's birthday," I added with a happy smile just in case Kyle might get suspicious.

She told me the date and I had a hard time struggling to maintain my composure and not to break something. "Really? I didn't think it was so late in the season…" I mused, pretending to talk to myself. It would have been odd if I hadn't said anything.

They moved away and I concentrated on feeding vegetables to Roddy. Three weeks? I had missed three weeks of my life! This was insane! They didn't just kidnap Souls, they stole their life away too. But even as I fumed there by myself, I knew that in a twisted way their plan made sense. They kidnapped the Souls, tried to wake up the Hosts, and then… I didn't know what they did with the bodies if the Hosts failed to come back in a reasonable amount of time. Maybe they put the Souls back in and then tried to convert them like they were doing with me. Seen this way the plan was brilliant.

"I'll have to stop you before you turn him into a pig." Matt's voice startled me, and I looked with surprise at all the food gathered in the rodent's cage. I hadn't done that. "It's not Christmas yet." He smirked.

Taking my hand, he led me away from the table and drew me closer to him. People around us were dancing, and I recognized that stance. He wanted to dance.

"I… I'm not that good at this," I stammered, shifting my weight from one foot to the other. Like so many other things, I had seen it being done, but I had always been too busy to try it for myself. And these people, while being hunted and barely making a living, still found time to dance. One might start to wonder where the fairness in life was.

"Yes, you are." His statement came out harsher than he'd intended, and he softened it with a smile. "It's easy."

It didn't look too complicated at first glance and my body seemed to know what it was doing better than I did, so I put those worries aside and settled into his hold. I had more important things to think about.

"What is it?" The tone of his voice made me realize that I had been quiet for a while.

"Nothing." I feigned a sigh, "I was wondering if I'd make it home by Christmas." His arms tightened around me. "Do you know?" I looked up at him with the best innocent eyes I found, if he believed them.

"We haven't decided yet."

That sounded as if they could either keep me, kill me, or free me, all with the same chances of happening. He looked like he didn't like where this conversation was going so I wisely decided to drop the subject. It would have been stupid to make my guardian angry or, even worse, suspicious.

I took a break after the second dance, using the excuse that I needed more food, when in reality I was looking for an occasion to find Wanda alone. I got it when Ian was busy talking with Kyle, and he wasn't glued to her side for a little while.

"Wanda… I was wondering," I started on a whiny tone, "when will I be allowed to leave?" She was a good Soul, and any suggestion that they might kill me in the end would have upset her so I was starting from the presumption that I was going to be set free eventually.

"Oh, you're not happy here." Her face saddened.

"It's not that… I have a life out there. I am needed," I insisted.

"I understand," she said, though her expression suggested something else. "If you leave… you'll lose Matt."

"He's better off without me." I shook my head discarding the thought quickly.

"I used to say the same thing about Ian," she murmured. "I was wrong. I don't miss the outside world that much, perhaps because I get to see it when we go out on raids. Maybe in time you could go too," she tried to give me some hope. "There really is no place for us out there…" She shook her head with regret.

"There is for me. I'm not like you," I reminded her. It was mandatory for me to be there and soon. She had no idea.

Wanda gave me a long look and let out a sigh. "I'll talk to Uncle Jeb and see what I can do."

"Thank you."

"Hey, why are you, girls, looking so serious?" Ian asked cheerfully. "It's a party!" He pulled Wanda against his side and kissed her head.

"Just girl chat, that's all." I smiled. They looked cute together, and I was glad she'd found her happiness here, regardless how odd it looked.

"Do Souls do that too?" He grinned.

"Oh, you have no idea what we do behind your back!" I chuckled evilly and took off to escape any more questions.

As the night advanced, I was getting restless and anxious. I had to do something. I couldn't rely on their good-will, there was simply not enough time left. And I couldn't just present my issue to them, I wasn't even sure I could convince them. They might never believe I wasn't lying.

"They're never gonna let me leave, are they?" I muttered bitterly.

Standing right beside me at that point, Jamie smirked. "I hope not."

He must have thought he was showing that he liked me by saying that, but I found no comfort in it. That's when I made my decision. It had to happen tonight. I had all the information I needed, so there was no point in delaying it. And I didn't know how long it was going to take me to get to civilization. I had no idea where I was.

It was my initiative when I went up to Matt for the last dance. I had avoided him all evening, so he wouldn't pick on my altered state of mind. He looked surprised but pleased when I approached him. He'd relaxed too along with the others, and for a brief moment something tugged at my chest and the absence of the usual coldness from his eyes and the genuine smile made me doubt my decision, but only for a moment. There were too many things at stake. The possibility of me _liking _him like Wanda had suggested, which was an aberration for sure, made my departure even more urgent.

At the end of the night, it was voted to leave the decorations the way they were and gather them at a later date. They wouldn't be able to use the lights like they had done that evening because they didn't have a long lasting energy source and had to save on fuel for the generator, but maybe occasionally they could be flicked on to lighten up the mood. I liked that idea. The game room looked friendlier this way. Of course, I wasn't going to be there to see that.

The waiting for everyone to fall asleep felt interminable. I counted back and forth up to sixty about sixty times. I couldn't afford any mistake. The party had ended late and there had been drinking involved after a long day of hard work. My chances were never going to be better. When I estimated the time was right, I snagged a flashlight left in sight and I snuck out of the game room, leaving it for good.

I knew exactly what I was doing. I hadn't spent the previous hour staring at the darkness, I had made a plan. On my way to the kitchen, I stopped by Jamie's room, the one he was using during the dry season, and I picked up a medium size backpack I had seen him carrying things around in. Once I got to the kitchen, I filled it with bottled water and dried packed food that was going to last. During the past few weeks with a special diet, I had gotten used to eat less than I usually needed so I wasn't worried about starving.

Going the opposite way I went for the hospital and medical supplies. I stocked my pockets with No Pain and Heal and I even took one No Pain, knowing that the exhilaration brought by it was going to be useful considering what lay ahead.

Another stop to the cave where they kept various pieces of equipment and, finding what I needed, I headed to the place of my last climbing experience. Climbing up to the hole in the ceiling was piece of cake even in the dark. Rain had soaked the edges of the hole and a little poking around with the hammer enlarged it more than I actually needed. The dislodged rocks fell to the ground with loud thuds that echoed in the empty cave and along the deserted corridors. I winced grateful that every living soul was hopefully far enough one level below not to hear any of it, and I hurried.

I pulled my body through the opening, and I sat outside on the edge. For a moment, I simply enjoyed the wind blowing through my hair, and I inhaled the electricity charged air. Freedom at last. Now I intended to use it well. I turned around and looked down on all sides, trying to estimate which way would make the descent easier. The flashlight was useless at that altitude, and I had to wait for the lightning from above to light up the landscape. Luckily they were coming on faster and faster. I thought I felt a raindrop landing on my check.

Best downward path found, I pulled on the rope anchored firmly below to prepare my descent and, when I looked up, I saw Matt standing on the opposite edge of the hole. I didn't feel anything when his fist connected with my head sending me fly backward. At that moment I was aware of only one thing. He was going to kill me.


	9. Chapter 9

~ 9 ~

I groaned. My head was pounding and something was scratching at my left cheek. Making an effort, I cracked an eye open and elevated my head for half an inch. All I could see was the dusty floor and a pair of boots. Was this how heaven was supposed to look like? I doubted it.

My arms were twisted to an odd angle, brought together behind my back, and as I tried I found myself unable to pull them apart and bring them forward. I would have to do without them. A slight shift of my ankles let me know the same thing had happened to my legs, they were tied together with the same rope that bit into my skin, bruising it, interrupting my circulation. They weren't taking any chances, they were learning. This was going to be so much more difficult. I groaned again.

"She's waking up," someone whispered.

I waited for a moment longer, but the help failed to arrive. No one was going to help me, I was on my own. And my head kept pounding. I didn't understand why since I had taken No Pain just before the blow and it couldn't have passed too much time since. Us Souls still had to learn some basic truths the Humans had discovered long ago. Some medicine didn't perform well when taken in combination with alcohol.

I wiggled a little to test the strength of my bindings and it became clear that I wouldn't be able to undo them too easily. Taking the other option, I made an effort and rolled onto my side. At least it stopped the dust from getting into my mouth. I brought my legs to my chest and rolled back on my stomach. The muscles on my back ached when I pulled myself up to sit on my knees. Time to face the execution platoon.

They were all there, every one of them, standing up and looking down at me with weary eyes. We weren't in the gaming room, we were in the hospital, and Doc was holding a scalpel. This was hell.

A few strands of hair had escaped from the rubber band that held my hair in a ponytail and I shook my head to toss them off my face. Then I straightened my back and shoulders ready to face them. I let my gaze wander from one face to the next, wondering who was going to lead the interrogation.

"Why did you try to escape?"

Ah, Jared. It figures.

"Because you weren't going to let me leave," I answered succinctly.

"Why tonight?"

"It was only tonight I realized how much time has passed since you kidnapped me."

"Where were you going? What was your plan?"

"Get out of here, cross the desert, find some transportation, get to a phone…"

"and inform a Seeker," Kyle muttered.

"No."

"Why not? We're a group of over thirty potential Hosts for you to use," he argued.

"You wouldn't make a good Host, neither of you would. You've been hiding for too long. If you get turned into Hosts, we'll lose over thirty good Souls, or even more."

"Then we should be extinct, disposed of," Jared tried to follow my logic, "if we are such a threat."

"On the contrary, you might be the solution. The only one. You need to be protected. That's what I was doing."

"By calling a Seeker?" Kyle sneered.

"I didn't have to do that, I wasn't going to."

"Why?" The question spoken with half a voice belonged to Matt.

"Are you a Seeker?" Ian watched me with interest.

"No." Pause. "I am _The _Seeker."

They stared at me in shock and the silence that fell hurt my ears.

"Let's kill her!" Kyle blurted out.

"Kyle!" Sunny protested.

"Send her off the planet then," he amended it with a roll of eyes, "though she doesn't deserve it."

He was probably right.

I waited for them to calm down so they would be more prone to listen. It was a long shot, but both of our survivals depended on it. Since I couldn't look at Matt and he was a lost cause anyway, I set my eyes on Uncle Jeb. He appeared to be the most calm of all and, being older, he was supposed to be wiser too.

"Define _The _Seeker," Jared requested. He was speaking carefully like even words could become dangerous when dealing with me.

"I don't go for individual targets, my goal is to supervise the colonization and transform the planet into a stable environment suitable for Souls," I explained calmly. The full extent of the implications got lost on them under the crushing weight of my confession.

"So you're like a Boss?" Jamie's innocent question made me smile a little.

"As much as that concept can be applied to our world, yes," I nodded, "I am something close to that."

"Cool!" The boy's excited exclamation ended with a yelp when Melanie elbowed him. Do not fraternize with the enemy.

"What were the odds…?" Ian murmured mostly to himself.

"Great job, Wanda, you brought us the queen bee. Wonderful!" Melanie sneered.

Wanda was looking too appalled to protest. I felt sorry for her.

"It's not her fault really. _I_ chose you," I told them.

"Get out of here!" Kyle exclaimed in disbelief.

"Believe me, I tried," I replied, although I knew he didn't mean it literally.

Jared's face tensed and looked like he was concentrating on something.

"If you are who you say you are… we could trade you…" Andy said hesitantly.

"And reveal the information I have on you?" as I spoke I was looking at Jared. He was the one with the plan, people listened to him.

This one shook his head. "We can't let her go, she knows too much already. It's too risky."

"And there's nothing to gain," I added with a nod.

"Whose side are you on?" Ian gave me a puzzled look. It was refreshing compared to his brother's murderous look.

"I'm simply helping you put things in perspective."

"We're not dumb," Kyle growled.

"I didn't say you were. But there are some details of the situation that you are not aware of," I informed them.

"What details are those?" Jared's piercing gaze drew holes in my skull.

I straightened my back again and winced at the way the bindings were pulling at my shoulders. They hadn't been gentle while carrying me to the hospital cave from the top of the mountain and I could feel bruises still forming. My head kept pounding, but I had to focus.

"Your presence and actions in the area didn't pass unnoticed. In fact, _I _was working on locating you. Capturing me wasn't a coincidence; it was part of the plan."

"You're bluffing!" Brandt found it hard to believe that a Soul would be capable of such a thing.

"Am I?" I gave him an illusory smile and turned my eyes back to Jared.

"Why did you want to be captured?" Jared seemed to be willing to play my game.

"To get to know you and estimate how much of a threat you are."

"And for that you risked being killed?" His eyebrows rose at me. "What else we would be doing with you?"

"I had a feeling it might not come to that." Though it still could.

"Well, you we're wrong." Kyle glared.

"Yes and no. I could still be killed, but not by you," I contradicted him with a calm that hadn't left me since I had stopped being undercover. "You would more likely send me to a distant planet to continue my life there, even if that is no use for my Host and it would mean killing it in vain. No, the real threat comes from somewhere else, and it doesn't endanger only me, but you too. When I setup the basis of this operation, I gave it a deadline. If I wasn't back by mid August, then they could consider me missing in action and would get clearance to proceed to the next stage."

"And that is?" My words seemed to have picked up Ian's interest.

"Major desert purifying operation on a 5000 square miles around Tucson area," I dropped the bomb. Someone gasped. "That's right, no living creature will survive, including us," I confirmed it.

"You're lying," Brandt accused me.

"I wish I was. Unfortunately I'm not," I slowly shook my head. "That's why it was, it _is_, mandatory for me to leave. I'm the only one who can change the directive."

The men exchanged a worried look.

"Why should we believe you?" It was still Jared who questioned me.

No surprise there, Kyle was immediately against it. "She's a Seeker, she lies!"

"No, that's not the definition of a Seeker," I contradicted him.

"But you _can _lie." The attack coming from Jared's part was launched without preparation.

"Yes."

"And you can kill." Again not a question.

"Yes."

The rumor coming from behind him was getting louder.

"She's not lying there, you can bet on that," Kyle muttered sarcastically.

"But now that we have established that she can lie, we cannot tell when she does," Ian mused.

I turned my head towards the most reasonable of the O'Shea brothers. "I didn't lie to you."

"I hope you understand why we find that hard to believe," he said in an amiable tone.

"I didn't have to do it." I realized I sounded slightly amused, but I couldn't help it.

"How come?" Jared wanted to know.

"You didn't ask the right questions."

He was taken aback by my answer and he needed a few seconds to ponder over it. Then he lowered his head to my level and approached his face to mine. I heard Melanie holding her breath. Yes, even with my hands tied behind my back I could hurt him, but I had no intention to do that.

"What _is _the right question?"

"What do I want from you?"

"Well?"

"I'll tell you after we solve the other more urgent problem," I told him and leaned slightly back, not intimidated, but to show him I considered that subject closed for now.

He waited for me to continue and, when it became clear that I wasn't going to, he pulled himself up to a standing position.

"I don't know…" he rubbed a hand over his cheeks, "we could keep her here forever and still not know anything for sure."

Wrong. There would be no forever after the end of the next week.

"Kill her!"

The acid loaded exclamation surprised even Kyle. It came from a small woman, dressed in black from head to toes, and if there had been a staring contest I don't know who would have won, her or Matt.

"I mean it, don't let her fool you!" she vociferated. "I know what she's capable of."

Did she? I seriously wondered. And what was so bad about that?

A few other voices seemed to agree.

"Now wait a minute…" Uncle Jeb interfered since Jared seemed to be at loss of words, "We don't just go around killing people."

"Maybe we should before this one too becomes one of us," Kyle sounded almost reasonable for a change and I could understand his point, "no offence, Wanda…"

The petite blonde shrugged a hand, distracted. She looked like she hadn't recovered after my admission that I was indeed a Seeker.

"Let's vote!" The woman caught the idea, probably inspired by the hand movement. "She's a Seeker, she came here under a false pretext, and she just confessed a plan to eradicate us all…"

"That's not what I said," I interrupted her.

"Shut up!" she spat at me. "I'm not the only one who thinks this way. We should vote, it's only fair."

"No, it is fair it is to call up a council," Uncle Jeb tempered her.

"Why bother with that? She's not one of us," the woman argued.

"I'm afraid some might not agree with that," Uncle Jeb said cryptically and it was Matt who spoke next.

"We won't need a council. That body," he pointed at me, "belongs to me."

I was glad to see I wasn't the only one who stared at him like he was mad.

"Man, I know they're so easy to like," Ian said with a quick glance and smile at Wanda, who was standing by his side, "but that rule doesn't stand unless you used to have some sort of relationship with her _before _the insertion."

Matt pulled a torn wallet from his pocket and extracted a photograph that he threw on the ground in front of me.

All blood rushed out of my face. From the picture, a young couple standing on the bridge of a boat was smiling happily in the sun. The woman looked like me, no, like my Host only ten years younger, and the man resembled Matt having darker hair and darker eyes. Noooo… After long years of peace, the horrifying memories, _one_ horrifying memory, came back to haunt me. I bent on a side and expelled the entire content of my stomach. Too bad for that lovely dinner.

"Uhhh…" Several persons present in the cave quirked their nose.

"Ryan was my brother. They wanted to get married after Victoria finished college. She killed him." His voice had absolutely no inflection; he would have showed more feelings if he'd been talking about the weather. I guess a decade past had lessened the pain. Odd, now that he'd reminded me of it, it hurt like it had happened yesterday.

"You've known all along and you haven't told us?" Jared was upset and for good reason.

"He told me," Uncle Jeb said, "and I decided it was better to keep it that way so she wouldn't suspect anything. It was too late to do it in any other way, she was awake already when he first saw her."

"And you put us all in danger leaving her walk around us all alone just like that?" To say that Kyle was revolted would be a major understatement.

"She was never alone, Matt guarded her all the time. You all owe him several nights of sleep." Was there a smirk hidden inside the old man's beard?

"Well, that just sucks," Kyle grumbled and I imagined he glared too.

I didn't see it. I was hunched forward, my stomach cramping painfully, and unable to clutch at it with my arms. Even breathing seemed painful. At that point, I hated my life.

Doc took pity on me. He rummaged through the medicine bottles and I saw his open palm held under my nose with a small square placed on it. If it had been poison, I would have taken it. It turned out that it wasn't. It settled my stomach and cleared my head some, but I still felt weak and exhausted. I wanted the night to end.

"People, it's late, let's sleep on it for now. We can see tomorrow what's best to do," Uncle Jeb decided taking one look at me.

"But…" there were protests.

"My house my rules. Take her to the hole. You can hang her tomorrow, she's not going anyway."

"Not the hole," Wanda gasped and it made me wonder what about the hole frightened her so much.

"She'll be fine, she's smaller than me," Melanie sounded almost as if she regretted it.

Jared and Ian pulled me up to stand on my feet and one of them untied the rope around my ankles. "No funny business," came the warning.

I walked between them, leaving everyone else behind, until we got to a less circulated corridor and stopped in front of an opening in the wall.

"Get in."

It wasn't easy to do that without the use of hands and I had to struggle a little but once I was half way in they pushed my legs inside and I rolled further into the darkness. The ceiling was too low to allow a standing position. The floor was curved instead of being flat and I soon discovered on my own expense why Wanda didn't like it. It was impossible to find a comfortable position in that hell hole.

"Don't even dream about coming out. I might not shoot you, but Jared will."

I didn't bother to answer. I shuffled and wiggled in place until I was able to pull my behind through the circle formed by my arms and with another coordinated effort I passed my legs through it too, which resulted in bringing my hands from the back in front of me. But they were still tied so I used my teeth to undo the knots. My wrists were bruised, as were my ankles, and beside the mild anesthetic no one had paid any particular care to them or would until morning.

Grumbling quiet curses to myself, I curled up into a ball and stared at the small patch of light coming through the opening until my vision blurred, my eyes closed, and I fell asleep.


	10. Chapter 10

~ 10 ~

_The staircase was narrow, not allowing more than one person to head up the stairs at once. I could hear my breath coming out in short pants as I hurried towards the faint light ahead. I had a gun in my hand, the metal of that small piece of destruction feeling cold against my skin. In a few minutes, seconds maybe, I would get to use it for the first time not in practice. I didn't have time to think how that made me feel. My heart was racing._

_The team was a few steps behind me. As a leader, I felt the need and responsibility to be in front. If anyone had to fall then it would be only fair to be me. I was the one who led them there. Besides, I was faster. We had undergone the same training_,_ but I had the advantage of a body used with physical training and fit for it, more than theirs. And my equipment was lighter, maybe not respecting all the requirements, still I felt it adapting better to my needs. My job was important. Without me the indigene population would never be subdued and kept under control. They needed me and I was good at what I did. I loved to create a calm and serene environment for my beloved Souls. I firmly believed in my Calling. I had pursued it on several planets and I had never failed. I wasn't intending to do it now._

_Top floor. The door heading for the rooftop was cracked and I pushed it open with my foot._

"_Don't come out or I'll shoot!"_

_The voice sent a shiver down my spine. He wasn't kidding. There also was no place for him to go, no way down other than the one we had come from. He was trapped and he knew it. It was a dead end situation._

_I signaled for my team to stay back and wait behind the cover of the thick concrete walls. It was an old building. Holding my arms stretched forward and clutching the gun without shaking_,_ I felt the sun's warmth first on my hands, then progressing along my arms up to my shoulders and to my face as I carefully walked out the door and into the open space. I had to narrow my eyes to adjust my vision to the brighter light. It was the middle of the day. _

_A couple of more steps and I finally saw him twenty meters ahead and moving backward towards the edge. Male, early twenties, dark hair and dark eyes burning like deep haunted pools of black water on that face that seemed to be getting paler by the second. He had a gun too pointed at my chest and_,_ given the determination written on his face_,_ I didn't doubt he wasn't afraid to use it._

"_Stop! Drop your weapon!" I yelled the default command._

"_Don't come any closer!" he yelled back._

_I wasn't going to listen to him, a simple rebellious Host who needed to be taught better. I kept moving closer, very slowly, one step after another, after making sure that no one was following me. This was my fight._

"_Give up! It's over. There's no place for you to go." _

"_Wanna bet?" His eyes glanced somewhere over the edge, but there were still a few meters to make it there._

"_Don't do it. We mean you no harm."_

"_No, you just want to steal my body, you bodysnatchers!"_

"_Your body will be put to better use," I assured him. "It will be better taken care of," that was not hard to imagine given his state of dishevelment, he looked like he'd been on the run for quite a while, "it will die of old age and, most important, it will never kill," like he wanted to do now._

"_Unlike you."_

"_It's my Calling to ensure a calm colonization, and if that implies killing a few natives to save lots of others, I won't like it but I'll do it," I stated. "And maybe it's true my life will end abruptly at some point_,_ but I survived on four planets so far from the beginning until the end, my time has not come yet."_

"_No kidding." I heard him arm his gun._

"_You won't shoot me." _

"_Give me one good reason."_

"_Because you won't shoot _her_." The calm displayed by my voice surprised even me._

"_Vicky is gone."_

"_Is she?" I gave him an enigmatic smile. Then why I had been dreaming his face each night for the past year since I had taken this Host?_

"_You're bluffing."_

"_Am I?" I slowly lowered my gun. If I looked less menacing, he was going to be in less hurry to shoot. My wish was not to hurt him. It was in my nature not to want to do that, and I saw no reason why we couldn't settle this amiably. It was before the time when Humans started to show a definite resistance._

_His look turned from disconcerted to horrified. _

"_No…" he gasped, "you can't do this to her." His fingers were white on the gun he was pointing at my head now._

"_I guess you'll never know." I shrugged my shoulders and made another step forward showing no fear._

_He took a long look at me. His gaze caressed my features burning hotter than the weak spring sun. Blood rushed to my cheeks coloring my skin. Somehow I knew that look._

_A sigh escaped his lips. _

"_You're right. It's over."_

_I small smile twisted my lips. See, I kept telling them this could be done without violence, lots of them were reasonable creatures._

"_I can't do that to her. But I can stop _you_ from getting me."_

No!

"_Bye, Vicky." He put the gun to his temple and pulled the trigger._

Noooo!

_I rushed forward to stop him but it was too late, all I could do was catch him as he fell. We both fell to the ground with me sitting on my knees and cradling is head in my arms. Blood was everywhere. By some miracle the gunshot hadn't completely blown up his head, his face remained the same except for the vacancy in his eyes that had been so full of life only a second ago._

"_Ryan…" I whispered_,_ but it wasn't me who'd made the lips moving._

_Someone howled inside my head, louder than the actual gunshot, and then there was silence again. All I could hear were the filaments snapping, a strange feeling I hadn't experienced before. For a few brief moments before I figured out I had to replace them_,_ I lost control of my arms and dropped the head hit the concrete with a thud._

_It was over._

"Noooooo…"

My own scream woke me and at first I blinked into the darkness not remembering what had happened. My nose was stuffy and I felt wetness on my cheeks so I mechanically wiped them with the back of my hand. Then I remembered.

Human minds had this wonderful self-preservation mechanism that allowed them to just ignore and forget painful memories. After another year of dreaming the same face again and again, only that this time it wasn't warm and loving but frozen and covered in blood. A long year during which nights alternated between horrible repetitive nightmares and self-inflicted insomnia, I had finally learned how to forget, how to shove all the memories related to that traumatic event in a corner of my brain and ignore their existence. Now Matt had stolen that peace from me.

"Are you all right?"

I turned my head and with blurry eyes I saw two faces staring at me from the opening of the hole. I realized that my scream had been real. What could I say? I hid my head in my arms, by then they might have noticed I had freed myself, and I waited for the night to pass. Uncle Jeb had said we'd talk in the morning, I was counting on that. And since I didn't dare to fall back to sleep any longer, I started thinking of a plan that would convince them to trust me.


	11. Chapter 11

~ 11 ~

The muffled argument I heard taking place outside made me crawl towards the opening in the wall. There seemed to be several people there beside my appointed guards. I peeked out and hesitantly slid outside to face the gathering. It was early morning as far as I could tell, and the welcome committee wasn't as big as I had been expecting. Beside my night guards, Melanie, Wanda, Kyle, Matt, Jamie and Uncle Jeb were there too and they were apparently arguing about something.

"Hey, who told you you could come out?" Kyle growled, giving me a murderous look, which made me pull back against the safety of the wall.

Going back into the hiding was more than tempting, and I had to fight against my deep inane survival instinct not to do that. We needed to talk, and most important than anything else, I had to make them understand. Since they were sitting down, having gathered there while I had been asleep in the first hours of the morning, I slid down on my knees in a non-menacing position and I folded my hands in my lap. One look at my bloodied wrists made me wince and hide them under me. This was not a good time to be weak.

"So…" Uncle Jeb coughed to clear his throat, "we're trying to decide what to do with you…"

A private execution? How fun! I took a long look at each of them while trying to decide what to say. I could lie, tell the truth, be brave, rebel… I could play a lot of parts quite successfully in normal circumstances. Could I take the chance and risk it all?

"I don't care what you do to me," OK, that was a lie, "in a couple of days it won't matter anymore," but the last part was the truth.

"Because we will all be exterminated?" Ian's eyebrows rose half in disbelief.

"Right." I nodded as serious as I could.

"And we should believe you because…?" Jared stepped in starting the interrogation.

I had to think for a moment before answering.

"You don't have to…"

"Ah…"

"…but you can check." That caught their interest. "Go to any town you can access from here. You'll find one police car on each side of the road long before reaching the town. If you look closely you'll notice the officers are carrying guns, and I'm talking heavily armored." With tranquilizers, but still.

"Actually…" Ian mused, "I seem to remember I noticed that the last time we went to town."

"All roads heading to the desert are covered, all traffic is supervised," I told them.

"That's a lot of effort put into it," Uncle Jeb commented.

"Well, you're a serious force to worry about," I said. "Souls kept disappearing, we had to do something." Even if there were no signs of violence found lately in the area.

"So you planned this whole scenario to catch us? You're the Boss, why did you get involved? Why not send someone else?" Jared didn't seem to understand.

"Because it was an important matter… and it was risky…" …and I was getting bored. There was also one other thing I hadn't been able to admit, even to myself, until then.

"And how has the situation changed now?" Jared inquired.

"It changed…" I nodded pensively. "I've got some ideas… how we could co-exist in peace…"

"Bullshit!" Kyle exclaimed. "Even if it's true, you just don't want to die, that's all."

"True, I don't want to die," I admitted. "But I don't want you to die either."

"Riiight…" Kyle sneered.

"Look, I won't even try to convince you, there is no time for that." I shook my head. "Maybe later… but for now we have to cancel the attack, whether we do it for you or for me."

There was a long pause after that.

"Can you cancel it?" Jared asked after a while.

"Of course."

"But…?" Ian tilted his head.

"I can't do it from here. Even if you had a working phone or computer, it wouldn't be enough… I have to go into town."

"I knew it!" Kyle spat.

"Well, I'm sorry, it's a big responsibility… there are protocols I have to follow."

"We're not taking you to town," Jared sounded more moderately, but just as determined.

I nodded fully understanding their concern.

"Yes, I knew you would say that." I sighed. I knew they wouldn't let me do it on official channels. No way they would have let me go to the headquarters, they weren't that stupid. I wouldn't have bothered to save them if they were like that. But maybe there was another way… "OK, how about…" this better work, if I were a Human this would have been a good time to start praying, "we go to my apartment in town. I have access from there… you can check it in advance, drive at night, blindfolded, tied up, whatever…"

"Oh, kinky…" Ian whistled, and stopped abruptly when Melanie elbowed him hard in the ribs.

"You can take any precautions you want, I won't oppose any resistance… but you have to do it fast. We only have thirty six hours left…"

There was even a longer silence.

"I don't know." Ian shook his head undecided.

"I don't like it," Melanie shared her opinion with us.

"We'll have to check the roads," Jared decided.

At least one step in the right direction was being done.

"OK… I'll just wait here I guess…"

No one said anything differently. Right. They didn't trust me, I expected that. This was going to be an unpleasant wait.

They started to get up one by one and I shuffled back even more. Look small and defenseless, that was the strategy, though I didn't believe it was going to work any longer.

Matt stopped two steps away, towering over me. He pulled out a piece of paper and a pen from his pocket and he handed them to me.

"Write down the address of your flat."

Ah, another encouraging step. They were going to check it out and see there was nothing suspicious or dangerous there. Good. I did as instructed, quite proud to see that my hands weren't shaking. A night spent in the hole did nothing good for one's psyche, but I was stronger than that. I returned the paper and pen without a word. I just looked up to him in silence hoping that he was going to make the right choice. It wasn't hard to tell now that he had even more reasons to hate me.

He was walking away with the others, when Jared said over his shoulder:

"Tie her up."

Arghhh. I really, really didn't like the restraints, not to mention that my wrists still itched, just like my ankles did.

But Matt didn't return. Ian and Kyle stayed behind, apparently my guardians for the day, and they could do that.

Wanda gave me a long helpless look and murmured, "I'll send you breakfast."

"Thank you."

I didn't count on seeing her too soon again. They needed her if they wanted to go into town. I wondered how far we were. Would there be enough time to go, return and go back again? I imagined they would wait for nightfall before leaving their hiding place. That's what I would have done, and they had survived for so long in the wild, they had to take some precautions. So it was going to be a long wait, like I said. I leaned back, propping my back against the wall, and I waited.

Carefully, Ian passed by me and reached out to get something from inside the hole. The rope.

"Hold out your hands," he asked me.

I did, reluctantly. At least he wasn't tying them behind my back. That would have been worse.

He frowned seeing the marks left on my wrists from the previous night. He was almost gentle when he touched me. "Sorry," he murmured, "but these are the orders…" he sort of apologized. He felt like it was an order he needed to follow, he wasn't just blindly doing anything he was told to, and I couldn't argue with that. I wouldn't have done the same.

"Can you free yourself?" Kyle asked out of the blue, after having closely watched the process of me being restrained by his brother. I had a feeling he wasn't entirely happy with the result, he would have pulled tighter on the knots, having the rope bite into my already damaged skin. So he was the one to whom I had to thank for the red lines circling my wrists. "Don't lie!"

I thought for a moment then, deciding it was wiser not to cross him because he was so temperamental, I gingerly tugged on the binds.

"Yes," I winced and let my hands fall in my lap, "but it would hurt." And pain was the last thing I needed. My head was still pounding, and if Doc had bothered to check he would have found one nice concussion. Matt had such strong hands.

Kyle groaned, "Is there anything we can do to restrain you?"

"You can kill me," I replied matter of factly, annoyed with the way he was treating me.

That made him grin.

"Hey, don't tempt him," Ian warned me more or less joking, "'cause if he tries I'm not sure on whose side I'll be."

"Of course you'll be on his side, who's else?" I muttered.

"Starry, we're not that bad… we're just scared," he tried to explain.

"Pah!" Kyle snorted.

Ian ignored him. "Aren't you?"

I had to meditate on the issue before answering. I also had to decide how open I could allow myself to be. Given the situation, I had to at least attempt to build up some trust as unlikely as that was.

"I've never experienced fear before coming here," I said quietly. "It's… unsettling."

"You fear us?"

To that I didn't answer. He didn't know how it felt to be responsible for the lives of billions of Souls and feel them slip through your fingers. It was agonizing. I looked away, the mask slipping for a brief moment and showing my pain.

"You should be!" Kyle took it as a personal victory.

Well, if that settled him…


	12. Chapter 12

~ 12 ~

"We've been there and it's a no go."

The words fell like a death sentence two meals and one restless night later.

"But…"

My protest remained unheard. Matt's head had already disappeared from the corridor's entrance.

I looked frantically at my guardian for the day and saw no comprehension in his eyes. He didn't care about my inside struggle, he thought that I was lying with my apocalyptic prophecy and that it was all an act. Everyone thought the same.

I gasped at the realization that I had less than 24 hours left to live. That all the people around me were going to be dead at dawn, and I hid my head in my hands. How could I convince them if they wouldn't even talk to me?

"I need to talk to Jared!"

I wasn't addressing to anyone in particular, it was just a thought spoken out loud on an impulse. And I was ignored, of course. They wouldn't let me go anywhere, they wouldn't come to see me, it felt like they ignored me altogether. They fed me twice a day, but other than that I didn't get any more attention from their part. Well, beside the guards, though even them had other things on their minds than wasting time to entertain me. Even a dog would have been treated better.

My mood was changing from revolted and vindictive to feeling sorry for myself, which was new to me. It didn't matter how many planets I had helped colonizing, how many worlds I had helped building, the proximity of death was making me go out of my mind. And it wasn't just death per se, I had lived with that danger over my head most part of my life, especially during the first stages of the colonization process. It was the idea of a stupid, worthless death because of these Humans who weren't wise enough to accept the truth. Mind you, the Souls living with them weren't much better.

"Starry?" a voice asked hesitantly from the depth of the gallery.

"Wanda!" My head bobbed up animated by one last surge of hope.

"Hey…" She smiled weakly and came to sit next to me near the wall. "It's alright," she told the guards, "I just want to talk."

They didn't like it, didn't think it was safe, but it was hard to say no to Wanda so they just grumbled quietly to themselves.

Just talk. I had to force my eyes not to narrow while watching her. Was it worth even trying? I wasn't sure. They trusted her, counted on her, depended on her to some extent, but she was no decisional factor, she was not strong that way. I would have had more luck with Mel, if she had ever decided to listen. I wasn't going to hold my breath waiting for that to happen.

"Did Ian let you come here to see me?" I asked ironically.

"Umm…" She blushed and lowered her eyes. "I didn't tell him… I just thought you'd like to know what happened," she said and bit her lip shyly.

"Ok." I nodded. "Let's hear it."

"We've been into town, Matt, Jared and I… We were a bit nervous, not knowing what to expect, but we made it to your apartment. It wasn't easy. We didn't touch anything, we didn't want to alert anyone…"

"That's good," I approved.

"Well," her shoulders dropped, "they think it's not worth it to take the same risk again… sorry," she whispered.

Damn!

"Do you believe me?" It was a question from one Soul to another, with the difference that I was also a Seeker and that changed the entire equation.

"I… I don't know," she stammered. "I don't think you're lying…" She stopped after the admission trying to make some sense out of it.

I drew in one deep breath. Could my luck change?

"I think they're having doubts too," she continued. "We ran into too many military vehicles on the way… something big is coming up… but they don't trust letting you out in a world that you control. They are afraid…"

I knew that. And there was no time to earn their trust.

"Wanda, you have to talk to Jared." Not Matt, he was too involved in this and he had more reasons than anyone to hate me. But Jared was the driving force of this small community, he was the person who made things happen. He was my only chance. "You have to make him understand," I insisted.

"I… I'm not sure if I can."

"We have to take action now… tomorrow it will be too late no matter what they do to me. Cause if we just sit and wait there will be no tomorrow for any of us."

It felt odd to put myself in the same place with them, but the situation was of such nature that our futures were interlinked. If I survived they would too, but if I didn't then the human race as they knew it was going to be extinct.

"You have to try, Wanda. You're our only chance," I pleaded.

"I will," she whispered and slid towards the exit.

The long look she gave me said it all. If she didn't believe in her chances then how she could succeed?

A couple of hours later I lost my faith too. So I ate and slept and then I ate again. I needed all my forces in order to be ready. I had made a decision. That night I was going to kill someone, one of those filthy Humans that got in my way. If I had to go down, then I would go down fighting. I would fight until my last breath to save them and myself.

The set of approaching footsteps put me on alert. Outside it had to be dark already.

"Night shift here," Jared said and signaled the guards to leave.

"Don't get any idea," Matt growled warningly.


	13. Chapter 13

~ 13 ~

I held my breath. No! Part of me cursed all the gods the human race had ever invented. This wasn't the way I wanted my last fight to go. I didn't want to kill Matt. It was bad enough that I was responsible for his brother's death, and they needed Jared to survive. I feel conflicted.

From their murderous looks I understood Wanda had failed. They weren't there to free me.

"Stop playing with Wanda's head," came the confirmation under the form of Jared's voice.

I shook my head slowly and leaned back to stare at the ceiling, not even bothering to deny it. Stupid, cowardly Humans. We had made them that way. We should have never come to this cursed planet. It was going to be the death of me.

Oh, death? Now that was an idea.

I lowered my eyelids and watched them from underneath my eyelashes. Jared was holding the gun. That meant I had to make Matt get closer and use him as a shield. Yes, I knew how to do that.

"Well, since this is our last night on earth," I said still keeping my eyes closed, "don't you want to know how he died?"

I felt Matt tense. It was a low blow and I felt sorry for it, but desperate times called for desperate measures. And I was pretty desperate.

"Aren't you curious how it ended?" I opened my eyes and smiled evilly. "How he screamed and begged for mercy?" I was pleased to hear myself sounding so convincing, and for a moment I was glad that I _could_ lie.

Matt stared wordlessly at me. His breath came out in short pants and his fists were clenching spasmodically by his side.

And then he growled, "Shut up!"

"Well, it was bloody… and messy… and quite enlightening as an experience," I went on. Technically, I had not lied, but his understanding was going to be different from what I was picturing inside my head, or tried not to. "We played the footage at many seminaries as teaching material."

OK, maybe I shouldn't have pushed it that far. Jared's eyes opened slightly wider. This behavior didn't fit the profile he'd imagined, it made him suspicious. But it worked with Matt.

"Shut up!" this one barked.

"Make me." I smirked.

He got up and walked purposely towards me. He had murder written all over his face, or maybe torture first and then murder.

"Matt, don't go close to it… it's what it wants." Jared jumped to his feet too, the gun ready.

"Does it?" Matt stopped two steps ahead towering over me and inhaled with difficulty. "Why?"

I didn't answer. I showed him. In a second, my hands were free and I threw myself at his feet. The plan wasn't to get him off balance as it might have seemed. The recent nightmare had unblocked several of Vicky's memories that hadn't interested me before. I knew who Matt was, I knew what was he like inside that cold exterior, and more important I knew he kept a blade hidden inside his boot. That was what I was aiming for.

"Move away!" Jared screamed. He was good with guns, but he still feared hitting Matt as long as this one stood in front of me.

But Matt ignored him. His free leg connected with my ribs making me wail and not just because of the pain. The blade wasn't there! Another blow followed, definitely busting my ribs this time, and with a sharp move he twisted my arms behind my back and lifted me up.

"Looking for this?" I felt something cold pressed against my throat.

I gasped. I didn't fear for my life, it just suddenly hit me that I would have to hurt them after all. And then I missed my cue and Jared was really close and I felt the gun pressed against my back.

"Shoot her," Matt said to Jared without moving his eyes off me.

"No, wait!" I screeched. "I'll make you a trade…"

"Shoot her!"

"Wait…" Jared said, eyes hard and face set in stone. "There's no hurry." Wrong. "Let's see what she has to offer… hmm?"

"My life… you take me out to stop the attack and save everyone… and then you can kill me… and brag to everyone that you killed the queen bee." The sarcasm wasn't exactly called for by I couldn't help it. It was, after all, my life we were talking about.

"We already have your life."

"No… not really…"

The biggest effort wasn't to free myself and put Matt down holding the knife against his throat like he'd done to me, it was to do it without breaking any part of him while not getting shot by Jared. Lucky for me he was so stunned by my little demonstration that he didn't even move.

I looked up at him. "You were saying?"

Jared pointed the gun at my head.

"That won't be necessary." I got up with difficulty, a thing I tried to hide, and I threw the knife on the ground next to Matt. "Just take me there."

Matt rolled off the ground getting up in a flash. "How… how did you do that?" He panted.

"We watched a lot of your action movies. What you invented in fantasy, we perfected in real life."

"Wow…" Jared looked surprised. "I didn't think it was possible."

"It is. I can teach you… well, as much as you're capable to master. We have a better control on your body than you do once we learned it well." The offer might buy me some time, I thought. "And you'll need it."

I pressed my hand against my side and bent over to spit the blood gathered in my mouth. Internal bleeding? A couple of cracked ribs for sure. What else? I couldn't tell. It couldn't be too bad, I was still standing.

"Well, you were right about one thing," Jared lowered the gun, "it wasn't necessary… but it's good to know."

I looked at him not understanding what he meant. Glancing at Matt I noticed he'd stopped looking so menacing.

"Oh, crap!" I groaned and rolled my eyes. "So when are we leaving?"

"She's quick," Jared said to Matt, who didn't reply. "Here's the deal." He looked back at me. "We had a council and the majority was against it. I tend to agree, but I can't take that chance. And Matt here can't wait for a chance to shoot you apparently."

I swallowed the unexpected lump in my throat and tried to keep focused. "So I take it no one knows about our little operation?"

"It saves time. But I will shoot you if you give me the smallest of suspicions," he warned.

"Fair enough. What are we waiting for then?"

The men hesitated, then Jared nodded and Matt held out his hand. A small square was resting in his palm. Poison?

"If you want us to trust you, then you have to trust us too." Jared's words fell evenly.

With that I knew he had me. It was a matter of trust. I had to prove my alliances, whatever was going to happen next. I took the square and let it melt on my tongue. The walls started to close in on me. Someone caught me before I fell.


	14. Chapter 14

~ 14 ~

There was a low rumble when I woke up as we were rolling down the highway. It was an odd position for sleeping, the way I was seated in the front seat, I thought for a moment, but then I remembered why I was there. I opened my eyes, becoming instantly alert. I felt rested and reinvigorated. Ah, the joys of Sleep!

"You're awake," Jared noticed from the driver's seat. I glanced at him, but I preferred to look outside, so he continued, "We feared we might have given you too much Sleep. You slept like a log…" he made a pause, "except for the time when we tried to give you more and you bit Matt."

"Huh?"

I looked back at Matt, who was sitting in the backseat, to see if it was a joke, but his face was like a mask and I couldn't tell whether Jared had been just teasing me or not.

"Well, he probably deserved it," I muttered.

The growl that came from behind convinced me I had been right. Was it just me or Jared barely held back a smile?

"Where are we?" I asked. "How much longer till we get to town?" And what time was it? The on board clock wasn't working.

"Twenty miles… we'll be there soon," Jared told me.

I leaned back in my seat and waited. He didn't need any directions from me since they had already been there once. They would need me to enter my apartment, though. And possibly upon entering town too. My fingers tapped a soundless, restless tune on the armrest. We weren't prepared.

"Stop here," I requested when a rest stop came in sight.

Jared turned his head to look at me. "Why?"

"I can't get into town looking like this" I pointed at myself. Nights spent in the hole, climbing, being tied up and knocked on the head had left a certain mark on me. "People know me… we might run into a neighbor, and the patrols on the road will surely recognize me." I had been using this Host for too long.

They grumbled, but couldn't really argue since I was right. The car stopped and I headed to the restroom facility with them hot on my tail. Luckily there were no other cars parked around or I would have worried about how this might have looked.

"Do you mind?" I turned around abruptly just before reaching for the door handle.

"I do." Matt reached around to open the door and passed by me to get inside.

I stood in the doorway with my hands on my hips, and I watched him as he checked the room, the stalls, the windows, everything. Hmm, I hadn't thought about escaping. That was odd.

He walked back out and gestured for me to get in.

"You'll need this." Jared handed me a bag that I took without checking what was inside.

I stepped over the threshold and shut the door in their face. Then I inhaled deeply and tried to relax. Okay, now I felt better. The good feeling started to diminish when I took a look at myself in the mirror. It could have been worse, but this wasn't exactly good either. Digging inside the bag, I found a set of clothes that happened to be my size. They weren't my first choice when it came to clothes, but they would have to do. I washed up and changed quickly, worried that someone might barge in.

Now I could really focus on fixing the damage. I let my hair loose and parted it on the side to cover the bruise left by Matt's fist on my temple. Someone had tried to treat it some while I had been asleep, because the discoloration was a little more faded and it hurt less. Although see-through, the blouse's long sleeves were going to cover my wrists. I had no socks and if the pants were an inch shorter then it might have been a problem, but the way it was I hoped it was going to be alright. My sandals were covered in red dust so I washed them until the straps began to shine. They were still wet when I put them back on. That was about all I could do in the given circumstances.

"Let's go." I walked out into the night and went to the car like I owned the place. I was getting back into the game. I had a role to play.

The rest of the drive was quiet. I was concentrating on what I had to do once we got into town and them… I didn't know what they were thinking. But we didn't get that far. We ran into a road block right outside Huston. All incoming traffic was stopped and the cars were signaled to pull over. I realized I hadn't seen a vehicle going the other way in quite some time.

"Shit." Matt cursed under his breath.

"What should we do?" It felt weird to hear Jared asking for advice. "Maybe you should drive."

"No. Go ahead and stop next to the line, right after we pass by the patrol officer," I instructed him. "I'll talk to him."

"A Seeker." Matt's growl was joined by Jared's, but we had no alternative. We were already too close and it would have looked suspicious if we turned around.

Jared slowed down gradually and stopped after we were waved to pull over by the man standing on the side of the road. I pushed the door open muttering, "Don't look back," and I jumped out then slammed it closed quite energetically.

"Be careful," the warning came out through the window I had made sure to roll down in advance. This way they could listen to what I was going to say and wouldn't have to get out of the car.

"Good evening," I saluted the Soul with familiarity. He was only doing his job, and this was part of the operation I had setup the bases for. "How's it going?"

"Hello, I apologize for the inconvenience. We're looking for some rebels," the Seeker explained in good faith. The spotlight of his flashlight had reflected in my eyes the way it was supposed to do, so he had no reason to be extra cautious with me.

"I know," I nodded and looked around assessing the situation. The group led by him was spread out, checking the other cars not far from us.

"You look familiar." He paid a closer look at me. "Have we met before?" It wasn't a come on, he was genuinely interested, I could tell.

"Oh, I'm sorry, it's been a long drive." I feigned exhaustion, which wasn't hard to do. "I'm Stardust, you report to me…"

His eyes opened wide. "It's an honor," he said and shook my hand obviously impressed. Another custom inherited from Humans. "I am Wild Wind…"

"From the bat planet?" I asked. I had heard about him, he was quite famous among his kind. "It's good to have trustful Souls in charge with things," I complimented him. "Sorry you had to work so many nights lately. It was a big operation, but things will start to relax soon."

"It's alright, I'm only trying my best." He smiled with modesty. "Actually I would like to get more involved if possible…"

"Really? That's great, I'll keep it in mind." I left the opportunity open.

"I'll be here all night and the word goes there might be a big force deployment tomorrow…"

"Indeed," I approved not giving away much.

"…but if you're in town longer and if you have some time, I'd like to discuss it some more."

"I will be pretty busy, but if I find some time I'll look for you," I said. "Right now I have to go, my partner is waiting inside the car," I added for good measure.

"Of course. I'll tell them to let you pass."

"Thanks. Keep up the good work and stay safe."

"Always."

I could imagine the guys snickering quietly as he said that. I got into the car and ordered, "Drive. We're late."

At Wild Wind's signal, the barriers were removed and we overcame the blockage. It had been rather easy, even if my companions wouldn't have agreed. There shouldn't be any other reason for us to stop until we got home, I reckoned.

"Star… dust?" Jared interrupted my line of thought, as soon as we were finally alone on the road again.

"It's a codename," I said drily and that was all I was going to say on the matter for now.

They seemed to have got the message 'cause for a few seconds no one said a thing. Then out of the blue Matt asked, "Do they always hit on you like that?"

"Yeah," I sighed, "it's this Host's fault." The curves, the eyes, even the hair, they were all appealing to human males – a Soul who used such a Host had explained to me once. Personally, I would have felt much better without that unnecessary attention, but I knew they couldn't help it. Just like I felt attracted to Matt. Like I said, it couldn't be helped. This type of Hosts came with certain disadvantages.

The men chuckled, which made me give them a suspicious look. I didn't see what the fun was in that. It had to be an inside joke. I often didn't understand their jokes. I knew when something had to be funny, but I didn't know why, and that was kinda annoying. I was trying not to let it show, though.


	15. Chapter 15

~ 15 ~

It was close to midnight so the streets were mostly quiet. We were not a nocturnal species, especially when our Hosts weren't. Regular Souls preferred to sleep at night, at least those who weren't tormented by their Hosts' memories did. Thanks to Matt, I didn't fit in that category, not anymore.

As we approached downtown, the activity in the street seemed to be more alive. I looked at the familiar surroundings and didn't feel a thing, not even when we entered my street. This wasn't my home. I moved so often, fixing things wherever my experience was needed, that I didn't have time to develop feelings for one particular place, which was a good thing in a way. Normally, I should have been investigating and making plans for moving onto the next planet, but it looked like I was going to miss the next stop in our spreading all through the Universe saga. My work wasn't done here, I couldn't leave yet.

"Go around the block and park in the back," I said when I recognized the patrol car parked across the street. This was something new. There used to be no special supervision surrounding my apartment. They had to be really worried, I had been absent for a long time.

We left the car correctly parked next to the sidewalk, as if for a short stop. Jared didn't want to risk bringing it into the underground parking, in case we needed to make a hasty retreat. I didn't bother to point out that no one was going to do anything to them as long as they were with me. He wouldn't have listened and Matt would have probably aimed one of those murderous looks at me. They still weren't convinced it wasn't a trap.

I led the way like a perfect hostess would do and let them inside the building. To their relief there was no doorman at that entrance. The stairs were empty and we made it to the service elevator in no time. They fidgeted in place while we waited for the doors to open. I knew they carried guns, painfully deadly weapons, so _I _was relived when they did. I wasn't convinced they wouldn't fire at the faintest sound. We had lived together for several weeks now, but at the end of the day we remained two different species who didn't trust each other much.

"This way," I murmured as I walked along the well-lit corridor.

It was a modern building – well, they would call it modern, I guess – not too posh, but definitely better furnished and decorated than most old homes they had been into. Us Souls knew how to live a good life.

We passed by the main set of elevators that serviced those floors and we took the stairs. One level above, their eyes opened wide seeing me type a code on the keypad in order to access the floor.

"We're no fools," I said. In fact, I didn't think those security measures were necessary, since no Hosts would dare to come this far, and they would have no reason to do it because there was a small chance for them to knew who I was, but my consultants had insisted.

Another long corridor followed, at the end of which I smiled at the camera installed above the door. The system hesitated, but then it decided it was really me and commanded the door to open.

"That's all?" Jared asked, seeing I hadn't even touched it.

I suppressed a superior smile and stepped over the threshold. Instantly the lights were turned on and the music started playing.

"Wow!" They looked stunned by the sudden disco atmosphere.

"Come in." I waved my hand at them gesturing for them to enter and spare the door of the dilemma whether to close or not.

I moved around the apartment checking a few things. The plants looked healthy, so did the fish inside the aquarium, only the refrigerator was empty. We had a good house maintenance system, but I hadn't announced I was returning home.

They followed me around, watching my every move, as if expecting something menacing from my part. The short house welcoming tour ended back in the living room, next to the conference call center, from where I ruled the world.

"What are you doing?" Jared's hand grabbed my wrist before I could touch the terminal. The entire system was up and running at full speed.

"I'm setting up a conference call meeting, do you mind?" I winced and freed my arm.

There were several messages waiting, but I didn't waste any time reading them. I could do it later. First, I had to contact those in charge of the desert cleaning operation in my absence. We even had a name for it, but I didn't think they would find it funny.

I sent everyone involved a message asking them to get on-line in half an hour, no matter where they were. And since they were letting me use the computer, I took advantage of the opportunity to take some mandatory measures. I played back the recording made by the camera outside the apartment and erased the part showing me and my two human companions. Then I did the same thing for the interior cameras that covered the inside activities, after I disconnected them all. It was better not to have any proof of their existence, at least for now.

Jared had supervised all my actions from close, I could feel him breathing down my neck, and he seemed to approve. When I finished and turned around, Matt was staring at a big painting that covered most part of a wall.

"That's a Miro," I said.

"Original?"

"Of course."

"Ha!" Jared snorted. The two men exchanged a glance.

It must have showed on my face that I was missing something and I knew it 'cause Matt felt the need to explain, "Hitler used to collect valuable art pieces."

"So I'm a dictator, thanks a lot!" I replied sarcastically.

"Hitler wasn't just a dictator. Under his command the Nazi killed over ten million people," Jared told me.

"I know that. I've read your history, all of it." The difference was that we didn't kill people. With the exception of those who stubbornly fought back, like these two in front of me, we give the Hosts a better, safer, healthier, and in most cases longer life. That's what they didn't understand.

I turned around stiffly, trying not to show how much that comparison had bothered me. I was a Soul, for God's sake! And now I prayed to their God. Just great.

My attention was distracted by the windows popping up on the screen. My colleagues were on time for the conference call as usual. "Move over there," I waved quickly at Jared and Matt to get out of the camera range, "and keep quiet."

They moved into opposite corners of the room, from where they could see everything without being seen. I turned down the music volume and in the silence that fell inside the room I heard the sound of a gun that was being armed. I didn't have to look back to know it was aimed at me.

"Careful with what you're saying," came the warning.

I nodded in acknowledgment and opened the connection on my end. I didn't want these humans to die. For a long time they had been just Hosts to me, but now that I had gotten to know them, they had become something more. So I had to save them along with other billions of Souls in the process. But let's take it one step at a time.

"Stardust! Welcome back!" Eight different voices greeted me. "We worried for you!"

"Hi, everyone and thank you, but as you see… I'm fine." I smiled at the friendly faces on the screen. It felt good to be among friends again, to be appreciated, and not hated or feared. It was a nice change after the weeks spent in the caves.

"We wondered what we were supposed to do… are we still on for tomorrow?" Scream into the Night asked. He came from the Bears planet and he was the toughest of them all. If I needed for the operation to continue, I could count on him.

"No, the situation has changed. I managed to infiltrate the rebel group…"

I was interrupted by their shocked gasps, followed by an avalanche of questions. Their interest I understood, but not their surprise at my success. They should have known me better, we had worked together for a long time.

"You will get a full report soon," I promised them. "What you need to know for now is that this particular group is a potential threat, but only if provoked. They live a pretty simple life in hiding and don't need much. There are Souls among them…"

"Prisoners, no doubt!" exclaimed Fuchsia Smile, the young girl from the Flowers planet.

"This will surprise you, but no, they are not prisoners." Not anymore. "They are willingly living with them. They are treated well, like equals, and they express no desire to leave."

"Impossible!" my interlocutors vociferated.

I waited for them to quiet down. "It is true. They're at the limit of subsistence, but they are not turning into beasts. So I'm canceling the operation… for now. They're not the ones we were looking for."

A deep intake of breath was heard coming from the side. I hadn't told them about that part yet.

"Tell us more!" came in the anxious requests.

"Listen, can't it wait until tomorrow?" I avoided their questions. "I haven't slept in… forever," I found a reasonable excuse, "and I haven't eaten in longer than that!" I laughed. It was true on both accounts, since it felt that way.

They understood, and it was getting late anyway. Eventually all the connections were terminated and I let myself fall on a chair, only then realizing how tensed I had been. Human Hosts could only take so much pressure, and while mine was well-trained, it was still human. Letting out a sigh, I looked up at my guards as if asking "are you happy now?" I noticed Jared had lowered the gun already, though he was still holding it in his hand.


	16. Chapter 16

~ 16 ~

"What happens now?" Jared asked.

"It depends on you…" I shrugged my shoulders. "I suppose you'll want to take me back with you."

"You know our location," Matt pointed out.

"Well, technically I don't know the exact location," I corrected him, "but yes, it is a huge risk, me knowing about you," I admitted.

"So you have to go with us," Jared reasoned.

"Yeah…" for now. Until I managed to convince them to trust me, and there was only one way to do it. Unfortunately none of them would agree to it. If I had been in their place, I wouldn't have agreed either, hell, no! Yes, I was finally able to see their side too. Of course, I could try to escape again and then change location and hide so they couldn't find me. That was also an option.

"They're still waiting for your report," he reminded me.

"Hmm… I could send them a message saying I found a lead and I had to leave right away," I mused.

"Would they believe it?" Matt questioned me.

"They have no reason not to." My smirk was more like a tired smile. "May I?" I nodded towards the desk and, since there was no out front protest, I started writing a short message to my collaborators and I scheduled it to be delivered in the morning. It would buy us some time, though not much. I took advantage to check my messages too, even if they were standing behind me and they could read everything. There were too many messages, so I just scanned through them in search of those that interested me. Ah, there they were! I braced myself for the worst, but it was the men who gasped first.

"What is that?" Jared stared at the shots of slaughtered bodies displayed on the screen.

"There have been incidents. Several," I said. "Someone is murdering Souls, in the worst possible way, and it doesn't spare the Hosts either."

"It looks like the work of a mad man," Matt frowned, looking disgusted.

"Maybe it is," I murmured. "Souls would never do that, so it can only be one of you."

"We didn't do this!" Jared was scandalized by such accusation.

"Yes, I know," I said quickly. "I meant… someone like you. A Host… without a Soul."

"He's damn right soulless, just look what he did," Matt was just as horrified.

"Do you know who has done it?" Jared asked.

"No. The series of murders started in the fall, but there are no leads, no pattern, or at least not one that we could recognize and we checked with Souls whose Hosts used to work for the police. Nothing. The attacks seem random, and while the bodies are hidden, it almost feels like they're supposed to be found eventually. The odd part is that there are also Hosts among victims, not just Souls." I sighed and rubbed my forehead. "I don't know; it must be one sick person whoever does this."

Jared leaned over my shoulder and I leaned on the side to avoid the contact. Some habits were hard to forget, and after all he was a human and I had seen firsthand what they were capable of doing. But all he wanted was to take another look at the photos. How sick, I thought as my stomach turned.

"I knew him," he stopped at one photo and then he flipped back a few, "and I think I've seen her too." He tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. It was hard to tell, the face had been badly mutilated.

"Were they members of your group?" I enquired.

"No, none of us disappeared mysteriously since I got there… and these are recent." He took another look. "This… hmm…" his eyes turned to Matt, "…we need to talk to Uncle Jeb."

"So they belonged to other group of rebels?" I understood.

He gave me an odd look.

"Oh, come on, you don't actually believe we don't know about it?" I rolled my eyes. We weren't that naïve. "There are at least six other groups activating only here, on the former American territory."

"Six?" they both sounded incredulous.

"You didn't know?" I smirked. For how organized they were, I would have expected them to know every living creature that had escaped the colonization so far. How else to organize the resistance? Oh, but if they knew, and they got caught, then we would know too. OK, that made sense. "Yes, we know, and as long as they're not hurting anyone, we're sending them supplies whenever possible without making them suspicious."

"I don't believe you. Why would you do that?" Jared was stunned.

"The colonization is nearly complete and, believe it or not, our intention is not to extinct your species. And…" I looked away for a second, "if their basic survival needs are met, they're less tempted to mix with us… so no accidents happen."

There were a few moments of silence, they knew I was right, and then Matt said the oddest thing, "Vicky would do that."

"What?" I whispered.

"The last summer before the invasion… we rented a cabin in the mountains along with some friends. We had been warned by the locals that bears often came out of the forest and rummaged through trashcans looking for food. She was afraid of them, but she always made sure to put the leftovers on the ground next to the trashcans each evening. They never bothered us."

From the little I knew about her, it really sounded like something she would have done.

"Vicky is gone," I muttered. And so was Ryan. We couldn't live in the past.

"So you say we shouldn't fear you? We're like some kind of wild pets or something?" Jared ignored that part.

"Oh, you should. You definitely should fear us," I agreed. "Just… it has to be a rational fear, not a wild animal-like one. It's best for everyone."

He thought about it and then he nodded in understanding. "Did you know about us when you started working at the supermarket?"

"Yes, we did. We were aware there was on group active in the area. Some disappearances had been signaled. It was just a matter of time until you appeared there, and what better place than that supermarket in an isolated location?" I smiled quite proud of my plan.

"You mean what you said in the cave was true? We didn't pick you, you picked us?"

"Well, Wanda picked me, but yes, the goal was to establish contact with you. That's why I was working there." I made a face. That was one of the most boring Callings I had ever tried.

"Why?" The question came from Matt.

"There were only two options really. Either you did the killings, in which case I might escape or the desert was cleaned if I disappeared, and the threat was erased, or you didn't, but there was a chance to get to the real killers through you."

"And you risked your life for this?"

"I didn't think it was you, it didn't fit the profile, so I took a chance. I was right."

"This was the only reason behind your willingness to be kidnapped?" It was Jared's turn to ask.

"No…"

He arched an eyebrow expectantly.

"We can discuss it when we get back," I said. "It doesn't involve just you." _Or you_, I looked at Matt. "We are… going back… right?"

"Why do you suddenly doubt it now?"

"Because we had a deal: my life for the opportunity to save yours," I reminded him.

"Do you always keep your promises?"

"I try…" I said quietly, but I was looking at Matt. They could have my life, but I hadn't said anything about not fighting for it. The smoky-gray eyed man would have gladly taken it if given the chance. Oddly enough, part of me didn't want to fight him. "This," I looked around, "isn't the best place to try to kill me. You'll probably be more successful in the caves."

"We'll see about that," Jared muttered. "You're right about one thing, though. We need to inform Uncle Jeb about the situation, and the others too." He checked the time. "If we leave now we can still make it by morning."

I leaned back. "The road blockages will only be removed in the morning. These were the orders and if I changed them it might look strange. It would be better if no one knew when we left and where we went." They didn't like it; I could see it written clearly on their faces. "You're safe here," I insisted.

"Wait here and leave in the morning?" Jared looked at Matt as if asking for his opinion.

"It might be wiser to avoid another encounter with the Seeker," Matt agreed. "Next time he will try to take a good look at us, even if it's just to see who's traveling with his hero. And if it's dark…" He didn't have to say more.

"OK, then we stay," Jared decided. "We can all use some rest, I guess." They had slept even less than I had.

Someone's stomach growled.

"I'm sorry, I have no food here," I apologized. "I wasn't prepared for guests. But there's a small pub around the corner that is mostly empty at this hour. We could go get some take outs."

It was a risk, but not as big as they might think.

"But first, can you do me a favor? Can I take a shower?" I pleaded, holding my hands together.

"A shower, huh?" Jared smiled bemused by my request.

"Yes. Please, I've been dreaming about it!" I even went as low as batting my eyelashes at him.

Matt rolled his eyes, apparently I wasn't doing it right, but Jared chuckled a little. "OK, but we're next."

"Absolutely!" The truth was we could all use a shower. "I've got scented soap, shampoo, conditioner, and anything else you might need," I chatted excited. At least if I was going to die in the near future, I would die clean.

"Wait," he held up on hand. "We check the bathroom first."

"Of course." I nodded not at all bothered by that. I didn't mind a few extra minutes if it got me what I wanted. The bathroom had no windows and no hidden weapon, unless you counted the dozens of different scented soaps, bubbles, shampoo and other heavenly smelling stuff. Hey, someone might be able to make a killer weapon just by mixing their scents, but I was not that skilled.

Jared went ahead to check and I was left alone with Matt, who looked awfully uncomfortable. I was tempted to say something, but I never knew how he would react to my comments, so I just bit my lips and kept my mouth shut.

"Is she really dead?"

At first I didn't understand what he meant, but then I realized he was referring to Vicky.

"Yes. She died after Ryan did." Almost a decade had passed and I hadn't felt her since. To me she was as good as dead. "She just decided to let go and simply slipped away…" It hadn't been that easy and it certainly hadn't been painless, but he didn't need to hear that.

Jared returned and nodded, signaling that I could go. I disappeared into the bathroom, grateful for that interruption. I couldn't stand looking into Matt's eyes another second. Taking a bath would have been pushing it, so I had to settle for a shower like we had agreed. It was a long shower, but no one knocked on the door urging me to hurry. When I came out I wore one less layer of skin and my hair looked normal again and not like some alien creature grown on top of my head. Oh, and I smelled good, really good.

I thought they would fight over the right to use the bathroom next, but it was nothing like that. Jared gave him a look that could have been translated as "Are you sure you can handle her?" and he walked out.

Matt wasn't in a chatting mood again so I said, "I'm gonna pack some clothes," and I headed for the bedroom. He followed me, but I would be damned if I spent any other day in that prison cave wearing borrowed clothes now that I had a choice. So if he wanted to watch me while I went through the underwear drawer, I couldn't care less. He kinda did.

I pretended to ignore him and I found a bag in which I shoved the stuff I needed. I included a decent pair of shoes and a hairbrush. That should keep me relatively comfortable for a while, I reckoned.

I was just finishing when Jared returned, his hair still wet. Wow, that was fast. Matt took his place, while we moved to wait in the living room. Jared turned on the TV and flickered through the channels, but he found nothing interesting to him.

"They won't say anything about the murders. We're not like that." Not like humans, who wanted to have horror stories brought to them in the living room on regular bases.

He turned it off.

Uh-oh, I knew that look. He was about to say something I wasn't going to like.

"You should cut Matt some slack."

"What?" I wasn't expecting that.

"I've been in his shoes, I know how he feels. It's not easy."

Easy for him to say, I had been the one living in a hole and have him count my every intake of breath. Souls weren't normally resentful like that, but I felt very human on occasions when around them

"He stays out of my hair… I'll stay out of his." It was all I could promise, and he knew he couldn't ask for more.

"Fair enough."

Matt chose exactly that moment to come out. He'd been faster than Jared. I was impressed.

He looked at us as if asking what was going on, so I shoved my hands in my pockets and said, "I don't know about you, but I could really use something to eat." Since neither of them said anything I felt the need to continue. "That pub I told you about...? one of you could go, or I could, or we could all go," I said like I had a choice on the matter. They didn't have to do any of it, but I knew them, they were pretty soft for humans.

"We should probably all go," Jared said after a moment of thinking. "You'll get the food, but we'll be there every step of the way."

I recognized the Wanda pattern, she'd told me about it. "Works for me." I got up ready to go.

They did the same.

As I had done upon our arrival, I led the way again. I had a great excuse, only I knew the directions to the said pub. We walked around the corner of the building on the main street as opposed to the back alley and went further ahead. The neon sign was extraordinarily appealing, and pulled us towards it like a charm.

We were half way there, when I glanced across the street. Something was going on at the entrance of the park. I could only see shadows in the dim light, but there seemed to be a struggle taking place. Jared and Matt had seen it too 'cause they stopped walking and watched expectantly, narrowing their eyes in trying to figure out what was happening and ready to bolt.

A faint scream reached us. Someone was in trouble. That set them off. They started running towards the park and, cursing under my breath because I was unarmed, I hurried after them. It would have been a good time to run away, but somehow I was more interested in whose side they were going to take. Souls fighting each other was unheard of, so there had to be at least one human in that group.

I shivered, but moved forward intently. The guys had their guns out, aimed at a man dressed in black, who also held a gun in his hand and pointed vaguely in our direction. We were spread out enough for that to give us some advantage if he decided to shoot, but chances were he would hit someone before anyone got to him and took him out of the equation. At his feet, the body of a young woman lay motionlessly on the ground. I couldn't tell whether she was hurt, just passed out or if she had turned the Host's brain to mush.

"Step away from her!" Jared warned him.

The man smirked. "I don't think so." His free hand moved and I realized he was also holding a flashlight. A small spotlight glided over our faces and stopped on my eyes because they were the only ones who reflected the light back. "Come here, kitty, kitty…" He gestured for me to come closer.

I took one step forward.

"Don't be scared… I don't bite." His wide grin was one of the creepiest things I had ever seen. "Now you and I will be going for a ride… but we don't need them," he stated and aimed the gun at Matt, who happened to be closer to me.

"No!" I screamed and, totally irrationally, I threw myself in front of Matt.

Pain exploded in the left side of my stomach. I felt Matt's hands grabbing me, but then the entire world shook and everything went black.


	17. Chapter 17

~ 17 ~

The world was still moderately shaking when I woke up. It was dark, the air was stuffy, and that didn't help with my fuzzy brain and the waves of solid, sharp pain. It didn't help figuring out my surroundings either. I could tell I was lying on a hard surface that vibrated slightly. That, combined with the humming I heard, told me I had to be in the back of a car, probably a van. It couldn't be the car that had brought us into town because there wasn't enough space inside to lay down the way I did. And it smelled differently.

A small attempt to move extracted a whimper from my lips and also let me know that I was tied up. I hated being tied up. I whimpered again and I tried to focus and see if I was alone there. Where were Jared and Matt? Had they managed to escape? They had guns; they could have incapacitated the aggressor to say the least. Or maybe they had just left me there and ran away, reckoning that I was not worth the effort of saving. How badly was I injured anyway? I had no idea, but my whole middle was wet and hurt like hell. Not good and no time to investigate any further.

The car pulled to a stop. The back doors opened and, as the light poured in, I caught a glimpse of two other bodies with the corner of my eye. I thought I recognized Jared's green shirt. I couldn't tell if that was a good thing or not, but I felt relief sweeping over me. Then someone picked me up, crushing my waist, and I passed out again. At least I didn't scream.

I drifted in and out of consciousness for a while. There were shadows moving around and whispering, but I couldn't figure out what they were saying. They seemed to be so far away. And then one of them started to dig its claws in my waist and I was suddenly alert. _He shot me!_

"Sst… I'm just changing the dressing." I recognized Matt's voice. "Don't move. You lost a lot of blood."

It wasn't hard to listen, I didn't think I could move even if I wanted to. He tore a large piece of his shirt and used it to replace the old one, which was soaked in blood. I looked away. It only reminded me how frail human life was, and I didn't particularly want to think about that right then.

I tried to focus on something else, other than the pain. It wasn't an easy thing to do. By now, my vision had cleared enough to make out my surroundings, in spite of the poor light conditions. I was in a small room and, oh, Jared was there too, standing on the side with his hands shoved deep into his pockets and a frown on his face while he looked at me. I took it I wasn't a pretty sight. But back to the room.

There was a second bed behind Matt, and a table. They were both empty. One chair. Nothing else as far as the furniture went and the walls were rather empty too if we didn't count the mold. That couldn't be good for our lungs, right? Across the room from me, there was a window, but it was high upon the wall and it looked like it hadn't been opened in years. It was hard to believe someone could escape that way. So that left the door. Only that there was no door. It had been replaced by some bars, like we were in a prison. Maybe that's what it was.

"Where are we?" My voice sounded so weak I could barely hear it.

"It's hard to tell. They took us to some hideout," Matt said. "We reckon we're not far from town, but we don't know it for sure."

They? There was more than one? It had to be in order to restrain both of them. "How did they catch you?"

"This idiot here caught you instead of firing when he had the chance," Jared said, but there was no rancor in his voice. We were all in this together. He started to pace around the room. For his sake, I hoped he was thinking about a solution to get out of this mess. I couldn't think clearly yet.

"They tasered us from behind," explained Matt.

Taser, really? Wow. I wondered where they had found them. We didn't make such things anymore.

"What…" I swallowed with difficulty. "What happened with the girl?"

"They took her away a couple of hours ago," Jared told me. "She was a Soul by the way."

"Was?"

"It didn't look like she was going to be much longer. They're not big fans of Souls apparently," he said bitterly and his face darkened. "You're next on their list."

Ah. Did he care what happened to me? My thoughts drifted away, as it was hard to focus on a subject because of that constant, annoying pain. Matt looked like he did, 'cause he tightened the improvised bandage to keep it in place, making me gasp.

"Sorry," he murmured.

I squeezed my eyes shut waiting for the pain to get to a more tolerable level. "What about you?" Were they in danger too? They were locked in there like I was. It didn't made sense. Whoever had kidnapped us, either human or Soul, couldn't possibly need to keep all of us prisoners.

"Our turn will come soon enough." It was still Jared who did the talking. "The leader doesn't fancy humans either."

I winced. That didn't sound good either. Before I could say anything else, we heard some rumors coming from the corridor and Matt urged me, "Close your eyes and keep still."

That wasn't hard to do. I closed my eyes and listened to what was happening, while struggling not to pass out. There were at least two people who entered the room and they were dragging something. I felt Matt bristle when their cargo was dropped on the floor with a loud thud.

"Is she awake?" a voice asked.

"Not yet," Matt said.

"Oh, well, we can deal with her tomorrow."

The two sets of footsteps walked away and, once I heard the bars going back into place, I dared to open my eyes. Jared was picking up the broken body from the floor and placed it on the empty bed.

"Is she alive?" Matt asked quietly.

"For now." He checked her vitals. "If there's no internal bleeding and no brain damage she might make it." He glanced in my direction.

_Unlike me_, I understood.

"Why is she still alive?" Jared looked at me like I knew the answer to that question.

"They didn't beat her hard enough?" I ventured, though much of the sarcasm was lost due to my weak condition.

"No, I meant," he sighed, "all the Souls we've met pulled the plug when caught by humans. Why didn't she do it?"

"I… don't know." I tried to shake my head, but even that hurt. I stared at the ceiling for a long moment, and then my eyes snapped wide open. "She trusts him. The leader," the man who had shot me, "is a Soul." I remember seeing the glint of silver in his eyes back in the park.

But that didn't make sense. Souls didn't do that – I looked wearily at the bloodied body – to other Souls or even Hosts for that matter. If I had been a human, I would have sworn in frustration.

"A Soul who hates both humans and Souls without discriminations," Jared summed it up. "Just great."

Impossible. I had never heard of such thing in all my lives on all four planets. But then I looked at the Soul-girl and shuddered.

"Maybe his Host is damaged." I tried to find an excuse for the poor Soul. "Maybe the Healers couldn't recognize the disease, and once they put him in he got…"

"Mad." Jared finished the sentence for me.

"…corrupted."

Matt gave me a long look. He was thinking about our conversation regarding whether Souls could go insane, I could tell. I didn't remember what I had told him back then. I was tempted to shrug, but recalling how well the head nodding had gone, I refrained from doing it.

The girl stirred. She whimpered in her sleep and mumbled something I didn't understand, then she stirred again. Jared went to her bed to check on her, though it wasn't much he could do to help. He was just leaning over, when she opened her eyes. He didn't get to say anything. She stared at him in horror, gasped once, and then her body shook violently and froze, eyes open, chest not moving. She was done with this blasted planet; she was done with the pain. I almost envied her.

I bit my lips and fought the tears that gathered in my eyes. It was harder than controlling the pain. Now I knew how hate felt. I hated that bastard who had done that to her. I didn't care what his reasons were, no one had to be allowed to do such monstrosity, and if I ever got out of there I would make sure he never got the chance to do it again.

For now we had to focus on other issues. What had happened to her, could happen to me too, and it could also happen to them. I wasn't thinking just about the beating, torture, but death, and that had to be avoided. Maybe it was too late for me, but not for them. I looked at Jared and Matt. They stood next to the bed staring shocked at each other.

"You need to get out of here." My voice was calmer than I felt.

Matt made an effort to turn his head and looked at me. "That is going to be difficult," he said after a short hesitation.

"How many…" I rested my hand on the bandage and I felt my fingers get sticky, "…outside?" I grimaced.

"At least five," Jared answered. "There were three in the park and two came out to help when we arrived here. There might be others."

"Humans?"

"As far as we could tell, yes." Matt nodded.

"Except for the boss," Jared added.

Right. So at least four humans to fight with. Could they do it? I wondered. Not just physically, but psychologically too. Could they fight and harm, and possibly kill, another human now that there were so little left?

"Do you know what they want?"

Jared frowned. "Not sure… something about the Souls."

So the humans weren't the primary target. That was a good thing. It meant they would come for me next.

"Can you get out of here? Open the door?" I was convinced they had thought about this too, but I needed to ask. It became increasingly harder to think quietly, and I needed to do it while I still could. I felt myself slip away already.

"It would take dynamite to pull it out of the wall or open the lock. I checked," said Jared.

"Then you'll have to do it when they come after me." It seemed to be the reasonable thing to do. And it couldn't take much longer. A timid ray of light was slipping in through the corner of the window. "Any weapons?"

"None," he shrugged, "but we can take them from the guards."

_Right, cause they'll be armed,_ I remembered. That didn't sound fair.

"We can dismantle the table and parts of the bed too," he added.

"Can it be done?" I wondered. Could it really be done? My eyes moved from Jared to Matt and back again.

"We'll do whatever it takes," Jared promised. "We'll clean out the place and come for you."

"No." My voice was firm and determined. "I'm not going anywhere." I wasn't fooling myself, I couldn't move. Even breathing was hard. It was a huge effort to prevent myself from screaming.

Jared didn't answer.

I looked at Matt, who was suspiciously quiet. But he was staring at Jared.

"It has to be done," he said.

"I'm not taking that chance." Jared's face was set in stone.

"It's not your chance to take." Matt's words were final.

He turned to me.

"What?" I whispered, feeling that I was missing something important.

"It's going to be alright."

He actually smiled, his eyes warm under the first ray of sunshine, and he brushed his fingers against my cheek. And then the blow came, quick and hard against my temple, just like he had done it on top of the mountain, and the darkness fell. Maybe it was better that way. But wait! I hadn't told them about the plan. And there was one other thing I needed to tell Matt…


	18. Chapter 18

~ 18 ~

I stretched lazily and hummed to myself. For the first time in what felt like weeks I felt well and rested, and there was no pain. Pain! I remembered. What had happened? I had been shot, then Matt hit me, and then… nothing. Some time must have passed 'cause now I felt fine, surrounded by a warm, dark cocoon, and I didn't want to move, I didn't want to return to the reality of the daily life. But I had to do it, they were in danger and so was I and I had to do something.

It was time to open my eyes and face the day. Hmm. Something wasn't working right. My eyes refused to open, resisting to my command. I tried to move my arms and my legs, but that also failed. Nothing worked. What was wrong with me? I started checking all my antennas to see if they were inserted properly. They were. I didn't understand what was going on. Was I dead? Trapped in a coma-like state? What? There was no after-life for Souls, and no matter how much I like humans, their heaven and hell theory couldn't apply to me. Was I going to be stuck like this forever? It could pass for some sort of hell too, I reckoned.

_You're not dead._

Who said that? Vicky? No, it didn't sound like Vicky. Matt?

_Bingo._

_Matt! What are you doing in here?_

I didn't know where that 'here' was, but I wasn't used to hear voices inside my head. Unless…

_Unless_, he repeated dryly.

_What did you do?_

_Something stupid… like Jared said._

_What?... Oh, no. You moved me?_

_It sounded like a good idea at the time._

_But… how?_

_I had a blade on me. Jared cut you… I mean, he cut the body and did the insertion. I couldn't do it on myself._

_Oh…_

Poor Vicky, butchered like an animal.

_Don't worry about it, the body survived the procedure. Jared has done it many times._

The body, not Vicky, not anymore.

_Vicky is gone._

It felt odd to hear him say that. He was the last one to hold onto her memory. Maybe humans were right and a person was dead only when all the memories about it were forgotten. What was more concerning was the fact that apparently now he could read my thoughts. I had to find a way to shield them from him.

_Can't you read mine?_

I prodded around the way I did with Vicky's mind, not really sure what I was doing as it didn't always work.

_Stop that._

I stopped. For now. This was going to be interesting. But we had more urgent matters to attend.

_Matt, are you being tied up?_

_No. Why?_

_I can't move._

There was a long pause and then all he had to say was, _Hmm._

_Hmm? That's all?_

_What do you expect me to say? This is all new to me._

_Well, it's new to me too,_ I grumbled not at all happy about how the things had turned out. If I couldn't use the Host the whole thing had been in vain. Another thought occurred to me. _Can you move?_

_I don't know, I haven't tried yet. I was waiting for the pain to pass._

_Pain?_

_The insertion?_

_Oh… oooh no… we never do it on conscious Hosts, the pain must be excruciating._

_It was._

_I'm so sorry. I didn't do it on purpose. It's an automatic mechanism that helps us achieve the insertion while not being awake yet. _

_I thought it must be something like that. I hadn't expected it to hurt that much, though, _he admitted.

The truth was he hadn't actually considered the pain, I could read it in his thoughts.

_I told you to stop doing that._

_Eh, habit,_ I muttered. _Are you feeling better now? _I felt fine, which made me wonder if there was more I didn't have access to.

_Yes. Hold on…_

I felt the muscles contracting and… we rolled on our back. I had nothing to do with it, it hadn't been my call, but it seemed to be working. It felt odd to not be in control. Matt liked it.

_Ready?_

_Umm… no? _I hesitated, but there was nothing I could do to stop him. I had tried everything I knew to make him react and, although his body felt normal like regular Hosts usually did, I failed.

Ever so slowly his eyelids rose and, through his eyes, I looked at the world. The first thing I saw was Jared standing by the bed and staring down at us with a worried look upon his face. He had no reason to be concerned, I was incapacitated and unable to harm anyone. Matt was thinking something along the same lines and that made me want to pout. Of course, I knew better than to do that.

Without waiting more than a second to make sure he was really in charge, Matt brought us up to a sitting position on the edge of the bed.

"Starry?" Jared asked carefully, and it pained me to see he was prepared to jump back if I made any sudden move. I was getting sick of not being trusted.

_You can't blame us after what we've been through during the past decade._

I didn't comment. We could understand each other, but only up to one point as we came from different worlds.

Taking it as admittance, Matt dropped the subject and straightened his back. The recent cut on the back of his neck hurt and he grimaced. He raised one hand and tentatively touched the incision with his fingers. He watched them puzzled by the absence of blood.

_Why isn't it still bleeding?_ he wondered.

_Our body produces a chemical that helps the wound close, _I explained with little interest. I was more aggravated by my lack of control and my situation as a passenger. _How do you think we discovered Heal?_

_No Pain would have been just as useful at this point, _he replied.

I could only agree. I remembered vividly the atrocious pain caused by the gunshot and glimpses of that transpired to him.

_Sorry about that, but you shouldn't have thrown yourself in front of the gun._

_Don't worry, I won't repeat the same mistake again._

Matt flexed his fingers and looked pensively at his feet.

_Why did you do it?_

Good question. I stared helplessly through his eyes at the dirty floor. What could I answer to that? I remembered I had almost had an epiphany right before passing out, but now it wasn't clear to me what it was.

_Hey, stop that!_ I protested feeling him prod tentatively at my memories. _Get out of my head!_

_Impossible. You're inside mine and it works both ways._

Unfortunately that seemed to be true. Now I really felt like sulking.

"Starry!" Jared startled us both.

Matt's eyes looked at him and I peered through them too.

_I'd really like to see how you'll explain to him that Starry can't answer,_ I giggled madly. How was that for revenge?

While we debated, Jared moved closer and lowered his head to our eye level.

"Matt?" he whispered.

"This wasn't such a stupid idea after all," Matt said and the corners of his mouth arched up in a grin. "She's more than a little pissed by the result."

"Matt?" Jared repeated and narrowed his eyes incredulously.

"Yeah, it's me." Matt ran his fingers through his hair. It felt softer than it looked. Jared pulled back. "You don't have to believe me. I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around it too, and I can't think of a way to prove it. Besides we have no time for this…"

"So we're on with the plan?"

"Yes."

_What plan?_

_Your plan. We take down the guards and make our way out of here._

_Oh…_ Just us, I understood. It meant that we were leaving Vicky behind and once we did that she was as good as dead. _Can we check on Vicky first? Please? _I asked shyly.

Matt got up and, deciding that his legs were going to hold, walked to the other bed. We both looked down at the empty carcass, torn by conflicting feelings. She had been a good Host to me, better than most would have been, I was sure of it. I was sad to lose her, dying so young. Technically she had been dead for years, from before we had snuck her out of the hospital where she had been in a coma, with no brain activity, but still. Matt was going to miss her for a whole different reason.

He reached out with his hand, just like I wanted to do, and he brushed a few strands of hair off her pale forehead. Seen from this perspective, she was quite beautiful even when sick. Now I knew what other people saw in her, what Matt had seen all this time. She was strong and beautiful, and had an appeal hard to ignore. Or at least that was how she appeared in his memories.

_Yes, she was_.

The short moment of silence we held was mostly to say goodbye. We were leaving Vicky behind and only God knew what they were going to do to her when they discovered that the Soul was gone. From what I had learned during my time spent on Earth, the humans' God was not a very reliable character.

My meditation about various religious concepts was interrupted by the sounds we heard coming from outside.

"Here we go," Jared murmured and retreated strategically by the wall.

Matt went back to sit on the empty bed in a hunched position. It helped him divert his eyes and hide his neck, but most important it provided with quick access to the improvised weapon hidden underneath. I saw all that in his head, he wanted me to see it so I would be prepared.

_You forget I'm a Seeker. I can handle violence better than most Souls. _

_You take down humans with tranquilizers._

_That's only recent,_ I muttered and wondered how he had found out that.

_Now keep quiet._

I did.

The same two men who I had seen before opened the door and entered our little room. They looked over the prisoners, but didn't look too concerned. They had weapons while we had none. The taller one with a mop of red hair on top of his head waited by the door, holding the rifle ready. The other one, who looked like what a pirate I imagined would look like, walked straight to Vicky. I winced thinking about the amount of pain it would inflict if he got to pick her up in those large arms. It was a good thing she didn't feel a thing.

He didn't get to do that. Jared went into action the moment the man bent over the bed. He attacked the guard near the entrance, and in the same time Matt pulled out the chair leg and jumped on the one in front of him. During the struggle that followed, although I was frustrated that I couldn't help, I discovered that my companions could very well hold their own. They put the men down, leaving them unconscious on the floor, and took their weapons in no time. It was a miracle no shot was fired.

_Nice, _I said when they were done.

Matt was focusing on regulating his breathing and didn't answer.

_I could have done it in half the time, _I bragged, _but who's counting?_

He ignored me and asked Jared, "Do you think they heard us outside?"

"Let's find out!"

At his sign, we all slid outside. The corridor was narrow, lit up by flickering neon. We passed by several other doors, but we didn't have the curiosity to check what was behind them. We didn't have time for that. All the doors were made of metal, no bars, and they were locked. Shootings occurred after we climbed up the stairs at the end of the corridor and entered the room upstairs. No one was coming from behind because we had locked the guards in our own cell, but it was full of enemies ahead, which of course saw us first.

In absence of a better solution, we fired back and did our best to dodge the bullets. Nevertheless, one grazed Matt's upper arm, but it could have been much worse. By now the entire complex had been alerted so there was no point in hiding. We ran from one room to the next, looking for an exit and picking up more weapons on the way as more people fell. I counted at least a dozen. I was impressed by their agility, reflexes and precision. Humans were natural born criminals, there was no doubt about it.

_You made us this way,_ came Matt's reply to my line of thoughts.

I would have gritted my teeth if I could. I didn't like the way Matt was turning, so in control. He had been this way before, but now that he had full control over me, it was opening a whole new dimension.

_Look out! _I scream alerted by a shadow coming from around the corner and in panic because he didn't seem to react.

Luckily Jared handled the problem in time and spared our lives. "You OK?" He gave Matt an odd look.

"Yeah," he muttered and warned me, _Stop screaming._

I realized that Matt had been paying attention to my thoughts, that's why he had been distracted. Now I had to stop thinking too? This life sucked.

_And stop whining. I need to focus._

That shut my mouth, figuratively speaking.

"Where the fuck is that exit?" Jared cursed. "We need to get out!"

"We're running in circles," agreed Matt. "How many more do you think there are out there?"

Jared checked the ammo left in his gun. "Too many."

He aimed his rifle at the closest painted window and made it shatter. Stepping over the pieces of broken glass he leaned over the ledge to look outside, then quickly pulled back in and hid behind the wall because someone was firing at him. "There are cars outside," he said to Matt. "We can make it."

Matt nodded, trusting his judgment. He leaned against the wall on the other side of the window and drew in a deep breath. OK, he was ready.

First Jared climbed out, followed shortly by Matt. The ground was several feet below and that wasn't a pleasant fall, but both of them were back on their feet in no time and running towards the cars parked across the yard, a van, a jeep and two Fords. They checked the cars and found them all with the keys in the ignition, which made it a little hard to choose. The idea was to blend in if we had to pass through a town, so the blue Ford was picked. They jumped inside, and the car left the driveway in a cloud of dust.

"Are they following us?" Jared asked, pushing the engine to the max.

Matt looked back. "I can't see anyone." The road was empty.

Why weren't they following us? I wondered. They had the means and there was at least a handful of people left, I had seen them.

_Tell Jared to slow down, _I said quietly, _this is a Soul populated area and there are patrols on this road._

**Author's note: Feedback please!**_  
_


	19. Chapter 19

~ 19 ~

_Are you mad at me or something?_

Or something, I thought but kept the shield up so he wouldn't hear me. I was getting better at this.

_Hello? I know you're there._

He pictured in his mind knocking on the back of his head on purpose for me to see it. It wasn't funny.

_Come on, Starry… Speak up._

Nope.

It was childish and pointless really to give him the silent treatment, when I needed at least one person on my side, preferably the one carrying me around, but I couldn't help it. I was in full sulking mode.

"Where should we go next?" Jared asked, once it became clear that we weren't followed.

"We don't have that many options," Matt said.

"We could go back to the caves…" Jared reasoned, "but then she'll know the exact location and we risk being exposed. Of course, the longer you have her in there, the chances for her to find out anyway are increasing," he mused.

"I suppose you're right," Matt agreed reluctantly. He wasn't sure how much access I had to his memories, and he couldn't check. It was a big risk. Of course, they didn't know that if I wanted to unveil their location I could have done it already.

_What was that?_

I pretended not to hear it.

"Or we could check into a hotel for now, and then see what to do next," Jared said and, noticing he was once again over the speed limit, he slowed down.

"Check in without a Soul for cover?" Matt didn't like the plan.

"We _have_ a Soul," Jared reminded him.

"I don't know how to act like a Soul," he protested. To me it sounded like he was protesting a bit too much.

"We'll be fine. The other option is to return to her apartment and see what we can do from there."

"We don't have that pretty face to smile at the cam," Matt pointed out and faked a huge, predatory grin.

That wasn't how I smiled. Wait, did he say pretty? Ah, but he was thinking about Vicky, right. The tone had been a little too harsh, though. He was never like that when he thought about her.

"We probably could get in without it," Jared said. Probably. "What's her opinion?"

Matt grimaced. "She isn't speaking to me right now."

"Try again. We'll be reaching some town soon enough." The traffic seemed to hint at that.

_Starry? What do you think?_

I rolled my eyes, or I would have if I could.

_Starry!_

_Wait. I'm thinking._

_And?_

I sighed.

_I vote for going home, _I said knowing damn well that, if it came to voting, mine wouldn't count.

"The apartment," Matt repeated out loud.

"It figures," Jared muttered.

_No! I meant… the caves._ Odd that I had associated it with home too.

_Oh. _"Wait."_ Why?_

Really, why?

_Think about it… if we go to my apartment what else you hope to accomplish besides finding some shelter? _Not to mention that my neighbors might find it strange to see two men coming and going out of my apartment.

_I heard that._

_I know._

Matt shifted in the seat and pressed his hand over the wound on his other arm. It wasn't serious, but it caused discomfort. _I was thinking you could convince your Seekers that you got another Host and then send them to that farm to clean the place and retrieve your old Host._

I hadn't thought about that. And how sweet of him to want to get my Host back. Only that he was doing it for Vicky, he didn't want to let her die, that was all. Arghhh…

_Why are you so pissed? I thought you'd want your body back._

Oh, so I had managed to shield something from him. Nice.

_Nothing,_ I lied. _OK, let's assume we do that and we succeed. Then what? What will happen to my temporary Host? They will want to know. Good Hosts are hard to find these days._

Didn't he see it put him in danger?

_Let me worry about that._

_It's too risky, I won't do it, _I said stubbornly.

"She doesn't want to go to the apartment, claims it's too risky."

"Then we agree on something." Jared nodded.

_Why not a motel?_ Matt went back to question me.

_Other than getting some rest for you, it won't solve any problem. And I don't trust those guys who kidnapped us, _I muttered. _You need to lay low for a while._

_Okay… _"No motel either."

I wasn't sure I had convinced him, but we were getting closer to my goal. Jared took a turn and entered the highway, avoiding the next town. I could only hope he was taking us home.

_There's still the issue of our location,_ Matt reminded me.

_It's not a secret anymore._

_You know it? How?_

_No, and yes… I will know it if I ever get back, and I could also find it out from you eventually._

That made him suspicious and I felt him dig for information in my head.

_Stop. _I gave him a metaphorical slap on the hand.

_Explain._

I sighed. Again. It seemed I was doing it a lot these days. But they weren't the only ones who didn't want to reveal their secrets.

_We implanted a tracking device in Vicky's body. All my travels are recorded on the computer in my apartment._

_Wow… _Matt let out a surprised whistle. _Who else knows about this?_

_No one. The system was set to send my team the data if I failed to return on time, but I canceled it. It's still stored in there, but only I have access to it._

He thought for a moment.

_For a species so wide and open like you pretend to be, you sure have many secrets._

_That's what makes me so good at what I do. I wouldn't stop from nothing to save my species._

_Nothing? _For once he sounded doubtful.

_Well… yeah,_ but even I realized I was lacking the conviction. Things had changed and I… ughh… I was not turning into a traitor; I was looking for new ways to reach my goal. Yes, that was it.

Matt was lost in his own thoughts. _So… it wouldn't have been a desert mass obliteration. They would have known exactly where to hit._

Oops. _OK, I lied. I didn't want to get butchered in an attempt to get rid of the damn thing, _whose presence would have proved them I was telling the truth, mind you. This was really complicated.

_So you did lie._

_Shoot me._

_That would be a little difficult to do, _he chuckled amused.

"What's so funny?" Jared asked.

"OK, she says…"

I tuned him out and stared at the passing by scenery. I had a feeling that once back in the caves, I wasn't going to make it out again.


	20. Chapter 20

~ 20 ~

We sat on the chair in the middle of the kitchen, and we felt like freaks. We both did. Matt hadn't thought about all the implications of his brave attempt to save me. We had continued our ride by car and taken the risk to cross the desert while the sun was still up. No one had stopped us, and we had seen not patrols. The Seekers were taking a well deserved rest.

He hadn't counted on arriving at the caves in time for dinner – we had stopped to do some shopping and had to wait for a while until the way was clear – and then for Jared to go right ahead and tell everyone everything that had happened. They could have used some preparation in advance, and so could we. Having all those eyes staring at us was even worse than the first time I had been brought there. Of course, the difference was that now I was at least one head taller and 20 kilos heavier, and if these people had never seen me fight they had surely seen Matt, and they had all the reasons to treat us with caution. I would have been scared too. The hole was better than this.

The audience was still debating over the last events, and we were waiting patiently for their spirits to calm down. Matt was breaking a small piece of bread with his fingers. We had been famished earlier, but we didn't feel like eating much now. Our stomach was twisted into knots. I hadn't known he would react like that. Although he didn't show it, he didn't like the attention.

Among them, Jared would be on our side. Matt and I more or less agreed on that, but for now Jared was busy holding onto Melanie, while he spoke with the others. Seen through these eyes, she was really pretty. Matt liked her too.

_She's someone you can rely on_, he sounded a little defensive for some reason, _just like Jared_.

Perhaps he was right, he knew her better. She used to scare me with her attitude, but not anymore. I reckoned she could still hurt me if she tried, but not for long. Size did matter.

Matt laughed at my reasoning. I was getting tired, and that made it harder for me to keep my thoughts shielded from him.

Mel was looking at us too, when she wasn't looking at Jared. Her forehead scrunched like she was fighting a big dilemma. She had quite a few questions waiting to be asked.

The one who was bouncing in his seat with anticipation was Jamie. The human child had even less patience and couldn't wait to start a third degree interrogation. He was actually cute when he wasn't too chatty. Matt winked at him, and he was gratified with a huge grin.

_Now we're never going to get rid of him. _I sighed.

_You like him too._

_He talks too much._

Next to the kid, nested in Ian's side, Wanda didn't hide her gaze when we returned it. She was almost glowing with happiness, and her warm smile drew us in. She was the only one who understood what I was going through, and she would want to show her support. She was a perfect Soul.

_She's going to hug you, _I warned Matt amused by his reaction_. _No, she was going to hug _me_ as soon as she had the chance.

_That's what I fear, _he muttered not at all thrilled by that idea.

_Are you afraid of her? _I teased him.

_She's so delicate… I dunno how Ian handles her, I would be afraid not to break her._

We made an effort to pull our eyes away from her. I would have still looked, she was so beautiful and she would have never hurt anyone, but Matt was more practical and, well, he was in charge of the body.

_For a Seeker you're such a wuss._

_I'm not a wuss, _I argued. _I'm not afraid of them. _That was true. As long as Matt was on my side I was safe, even if I was not in control. He would keep me safe. The problem was it couldn't last long. And I had promised them my life.

_Enough with that._ He was angry now. W_e're not murderers. It's a miracle you managed to survive this long with this suicidal attitude._

_I'm not suicidal, _I muttered. I had simply known for a long time that one day it was going to end badly for me, ever since that day on top of the building… I hurried to chase the memory away.

_What was that? _

_Nothing! _I snapped.

He had only caught a glimpse of the sky and the ledge, and that was all he was ever going to see, even if it meant never to sleep again in my short, pathetic life.

Any possible argument was delayed because Uncle Jeb was starting to speak. It got quiet around the room, everyone was paying attention to what he had to say.

"Let's recap for a bit… we have a main threat that has been temporarily postponed," he glanced in our direction, "so we're safe here for the time being. On the other hand, there is one, I would say rather large, group of humans-"

"And Souls," Jared added.

"…and Souls," Uncle Jeb amended, less convinced like I was, "who kidnap both humans and Souls and they murder them for some reason still unknown… did I get it right, Starry?" He looked in my direction.

_Mostly so._

"She says yes." Matt nodded.

"Good… the not so good part is that their actions, aside from being atrocious, which I understand they are," another nod from both Jared and Matt, "will reflect badly on us. We will never live in peace, or at least with some sense of security, as long as Seekers are looking for them. And to top it all, they took one of us."

That thought startled me. One of them? I kept thinking about the body and me as being the same person, when they obviously didn't.

Uncle Jeb gave us a long look, and more eyes stared at us. "The question is," he said, "what do we do now?"

Several voices spoke at once. I had nothing to say on the matter, and Matt kept quiet too.

_For now,_ his thought was a mere whisper. _Relax, we have a plan._

_We?_

_Jared and I._

_Since when?_

_Since before we escaped._

_Ah… but… _Shouldn't I have been informed too?

_Ssst…_

"We have to go back," Jared was speaking.

Opinions were split on that matter. I could understand their reasons, and I couldn't interfere. I wasn't sure what I would have said if I could. One thing was clear, no matter how you put it, there was danger ahead.

"Why?" Ian asked.

"That's a stupid question, bro," Kyle called from the opposite side of the room, "to kick some ass, of course." He smirked obviously looking forward to the task.

"No!" Sunny clung to him in a desperate attempt to make him change his mind. I couldn't hold it against her, if she'd only seen what we had seen…

"Baby," Kyle's voice softened as he cupped the girl's face, "we need to get Starry's body back. Do you want her to be forever stuck inside Matt's head? That's… kinky," he chuckled, "don't you think?"

I hadn't thought about it in that way. Was it?

_Ignore it. He's just being Kyle._

"I suppose…" Sunny looked at us, torn between wanting to help and in the same time wanting to keep Kyle safe. Oh, I recognized that look.

I wanted to tell her that I understood and that she didn't have to torment herself, but of course I was unable to do it, and Matt wouldn't translate for me.

_Patience._

"Do we have even a remote chance to get her out alive?" Uncle Jeb wanted to know. "You said she was badly injured."

"She was." Jared nodded. "She took a hit in the stomach, possibly a death causing wound with our medication."

I felt like I was going to be sick just by thinking about that. Matt was a little queasy remembering the way he'd left that body covered in blood, lying on the bed. My body!

_OK, OK, yours_.

"However, I think it is treatable with theirs," Jared said, and by that he meant Souls'.

"Would they have any reason to fix her?" Uncle Jeb asked.

"I don't know." Jared shrugged his shoulders, while his arm rested around Mel's waist. "It would be easy for them to figure out the Soul is gone. But they might want to still extract information from her… or torture." His voice lowered at this point.

Both Matt and I winced. We didn't like that.

"What happens if they try to fix her?" Uncle Jeb's question was addressed to Doc this time.

"She will heal properly," Doc said, "but there is no brain activity, you saw the readings, so she won't wake up."

"That won't stop them from waiting for her to wake up. They didn't look like big experts in human anatomy from what we saw," Jared told them.

"So we can assume they will wait for a while," Uncle Jeb said pensively, "but we don't know how long."

From the corner of an eye, I saw Wanda elbowing Ian and this one cleared his throat. "OK, worst case scenario: they think she's useless so they don't treat her and just let her die. How long?"

Jared glanced in Matt's direction first. "Normally, I would say she might be dead by now… but we gave her six full dozes of Sleep."

_What? You had Sleep with you and you didn't tell me?_

_We use it to kidnap Souls. It works better than chloroform._

"Sleep slows down the metabolism tremendously," Doc said. "You might have bought her an extra day or two. Good call!"

Jared forced a smile. Matt wasn't so sure of the result.

"So if they don't dump the body somewhere, we have good chances to get her back," Ian concluded.

"No, even if they do we can still find her," Jared said and proceeded to tell them about the tracking device.

There was shock, and a couple yells of 'I told you so!', which made me think that maybe it would have been better if he hadn't told them.

"I don't trust her! Who knows what else she has lied about?" the Host of a former Seeker, dressed in black from head to toes, vociferated.

_Not much._

"We're still here," Matt finally said something.

"The road blocks have been removed," Jared said.

"There's no Seeker activity in the area," Brandt reminded everyone.

"And she's not screaming to be released like she did before," Matt ended.

_I didn't scream._

_Shut up._

"If we decide to trust you, Starry," Uncle Jeb looked at Matt, "and not just ship you off the planet, what do we get in return?"

Oh, blackmail. Nice.

_More than you can hope for, _I said to Matt.

_Really?_

_I'll tell you all about it later, when I get my body back. It's what I came here for in the first place._

He thought about it, a little too long, testing Uncle Jeb's patience. "Well?"

"She promises full support."

_That's not what I said._

"Can she do that?" Uncle Jeb's eyebrows arched in surprise.

_That's not what I said!_

"I believe her."

What? He believed me? Why? But I didn't dare ask. Not now.

"OK." Was it just me or also Matt who let out a relieved breath of air hearing Uncle Jeb say that? "Then now we have to decide whether we retrieve the old body or we find her a new one. Jared?"

"It won't be easy," this one pondered on the issue, "but with a few more men it's doable."

It seemed to be all that Uncle Jeb needed to hear. "So? Should we vote?"

Sharon, the redhead, was the first to speak against it. "It's not worth the effort. The Host is just an empty shell."

And here I was thinking that was the whole reason for doing it.

"How about we first see if we have any volunteers for the job?" Uncle Jeb suggested.

Jared and Matt raised their hands without the slightest hesitation. A second later, Kyle's hand shot up as if he was afraid he might be left behind. Ian's followed calmly. Just four?

_It's better than two._

"Sounds like a plan then." A smirk was dancing in the old man's beard.

Plan? What plan? We didn't have any plan.

"Let's all get some shut eye first and work all the details in the morning." Uncle Jeb got up, and that was the signal for everyone to do the same. Little by little, people started to leave the kitchen. "Hmm, you don't mind spending the night in one of the rooms, do you?" he said to Matt, and it wasn't just a question. "It's not raining tonight, and it will make them less concerned."

Matt nodded. "That's fine."

_They'll probably put a guard at the door, _I warned him.

_Do you plan to do something stupid?_

_Pah, like I could! _I snorted.

"Good night all." Uncle Jeb retreated after the others. Only Matt, Jared, Melanie, Wanda, Ian and Jamie remained in the kitchen.

"I don't know about you, but I'm still hungry," Jared declared, and the girls jumped to pile food in front of us.

Matt grunted in agreement. We were kinda hungry too. He ate in silence, not thinking about anything in particular. Or maybe he did and I just didn't have access to it.

_They're staring at us,_ I murmured after a little while, and he looked up. Indeed they were.

_What did you expect?_

Jamie was fidgeting in his seat like he had hundreds of questions to ask, but he didn't dare. It was his sister who spoke first.

"How is she?"

_Lie._

"Frustrated." Matt went for the truth.

"Can't she do anything at all?" Wanda asked.

"Nothing so far…" _other than poking around with her antennas, _he continued just for me to hear it.

_Sorry._

"And there's no one around to overwhelm either of them," Ian murmured towards Wanda. I didn't understand what he meant by that, but I saw Wanda blush. Jared and Melanie grinned at each other. Matt didn't understand it either.

"While you're in there," Wanda watched us from underneath long, blonde eyelashes, "do some prodding, no matter how much he's complaining. It would do a lot of help," she advised.

Matt's eyes narrowed at her. _Don't even think about it. _

_What kind of help? _How could digging through Matt's head could help me or anyone else?

"She wants to know what help you are talking about?"

"Well, let's just say that communication among our species is not as good as we might like to think it is."

_Tell me about it! _Was it me or him that thought that?

"And… umm…" a secret smile danced upon her lips and she leaned against Ian, "it will help you understand better…"

_Understand what? _Why didn't they stop talking so cryptically?

"The same goes for you, Matt." Mel jumped to help the human. "You can do that too, and you should." She insisted.

Matt was slightly less puzzled. Of course, he assumed she was talking about my secrets as a Seeker, and not as an individual.

"Oh, boy, you're in trouble." Jared smirked at Matt. "If these two start plotting something…"

"As much as it irks me," Ian laughed, "I have to admit he's right."

Jamie looked from one to another, struggling to keep up with the conversation, and he asked innocently, "You mean Wanda would have known sooner how love feels for us and she would have realized she loved Ian?"

Wanda hid her face against Ian's chest, and he cradled her in his arms, running his fingers gently through her long, golden locks. "It was good enough when it happened," he murmured.

"Well, I haven't helped much with that." Melanie grimaced as if she didn't particularly like the memory.

Jared had a different opinion. He smiled playfully at her, and she rolled her eyes.

_They don't mean that… do they?_

"I'll consider it," Matt said in a blank tone.

Consider what? _I'm done, I want to go to bed, _I informed him.

_Already?_ He looked down regretfully at the food left on his plate.

_I'm tired._

That seemed to soften his defense. He pushed the plate away and let the girls clean up the table. Jared was munching on a last piece of bread. Matt would have liked one too, but I reminded him that I wasn't crazy about it, and it was late.

He sighed. _OK_.

"Careful there, she'll drive you nuts if you let her." Mel was definitely not on my side that night.

"Aww…" Wanda faked a pout. "I wasn't that bad."

"No, but eating fries with milkshake was gross," Mel said, making the blonde giggle.

_I haven't tried that combination yet._

_And you won't, not as long as you're in here. You're a guest so be polite or I'll take you out._

_Ouch. Touchy._

He started getting up. "I better take her to bed before you put any more crazy ideas in her head." The men laughed and midway through the phrase Matt's face got slightly warmer.

"Matt, wait!" Jamie ran to one of the cabinets and pulled out a box he took the lid off of. "For Starry." He handed him a handful of dried fruits cut into small pieces. "She likes them."

Matt hesitated only for a moment, then his large hand closed over the offering. "She says thanks," he told the kid before I could form the thought.

_Thank you. _I was thanking him for accepting the fruits, but also for being nice to the boy. It didn't mean he would eat them.

He headed for the corridor, but stopped short to say "If I don't wake up in the morning… you know what to do."

_What? _I asked suspiciously.

_I don't know… I'm sure they'll figure out something._

That didn't sound too assuring.

We chewed on the small pieces of dried fruits as we walked on the corridor. The spotlight was showing us the way.

_Where are we going to sleep?_

_My room._

_You have a room here? I thought you were new here too._

_I come and go… I don't really have a place of my own._

Not belonging anywhere; that I understood. You could struggle and fight, but if you couldn't find someone to really connect to, it was hard.

We found the room and opened the door to enter.

"Good night," came Brandt's voice from inside a room across the corridor.

We took it for a warning that he was going to stay on guard.

"'night," Matt replied and let the door open behind us.

The room was mostly empty, having been cleaned up for the monsoon season, but he managed to find a set of old clothes. He took off his shirt.

_Don't look._

_Huh? I can only look where you want me to look._

_It was a joke._

_Ah…_ I thought for a moment. _I don't have to look. I know your body inside out, better than you do actually_, I bragged.

He shrugged, not about to argue with me on that subject. He finished dressing up and lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling into the darkness. He was awfully quiet. I reckoned he was tired so I minded my own business.

_Relax, Starry, we'll get your body back._

…_thanks._

_Now go to sleep._

_I can't sleep. _It wasn't exactly a lie. I was afraid to fall asleep. I couldn't let him witness the nightmare that haunted me. Never. Even if it meant I would never get to sleep again. I couldn't do that to him.

_OK, suit yourself._

He closed his eyes, and I felt sleep teasing at the edges of my conscience. That wasn't good. What if he could command me to sleep? I started humming softly to myself.

_Do you mind?_

_Hmm?_

_I can't fall asleep if you keep singing._

_Sorry._

Now that I couldn't sing to entertain myself, I waited a few seconds, then I started browsing through my memories. I didn't dare touch his yet. I focused on the happy ones, taking place in distant worlds, away from this planet that someday was going to be the death of me, maybe even sooner than I thought. It kept me busy for a short while.

_That was interesting, but I really need to sleep now, _I heard Matt's voice coming out of nowhere.

He emptied his mind of every conscious thought, and darkness enveloped me like a soft, warm blanket. The next thing I knew I was asleep.


	21. Chapter 21

~ 21 ~

The scream that reverberated through the caves had nothing humane in it. It came from Matt's mouth, but in the same time it belonged to me. When sleep had tricked me, it had opened the gate wide open for nightmares to come, and they hadn't let themselves be expected for long. It was the same old one that had been torturing my psyche for years, only that this time, the difference was that I wasn't the only participant. Matt saw it too.

We were on the rooftop, talking to Ryan, trying to convince him to put the gun down and turn himself in. I was in Vicky's body, and it was me speaking the words, like repeating an old play, while Matt just watched with horror and morbid fascination. He wanted to know what had happened to his brother, and it was too late to prevent that.

'Bye, Vicky,' Ryan spoke the dreaded words. Blood and gray matter spread on the ground, and his body fell in slow motion, a vacant look in his eyes.

I ran to him like I did each time, and I cradled his head in my arms. When I looked down, it wasn't Ryan's face I was seeing, it was Matt's. And then I screamed. My desperation travelled along his throat, tensed his vocal cords and exploded out of his mouth. I didn't remember screaming so loud before. Of course, now I had a different set of lungs.

It was so loud that it woke Brandt up, and it made him come running into our room.

"Matt, what happened? Are you alright?"

Matt was sitting straight up on the cot, holding his head with both hands and panting heavily.

"It was… a nightmare," he gritted between clenched teeth. "I'm… fine."

"Are you sure?" Brandt watched us warily.

"Yes…" Matt nodded, still focusing on the dream.

Brandt waited a few more seconds, as if expecting for him to turn feral or something, then he retreated quietly. Both doors remained open.

_Was that real?_

_No, _I whimpered. Technically, it had been a dream.

_But it happened, _he insisted. _That's how he died._

It was not a question. He knew.

I stifled a sob. Welcome to my world. Try living with that memory every second of the day and then dare complain that our life was easy.

The attack took me by surprise. I hadn't seen it coming. He tore into my memories with the force of a bulldozer, shoving them left and right, going deeper; digging for more. He didn't know what he was doing so it hurt. Memories were supposed to be handled with care, like delicate stamps, and not split open with a knife.

_Stop! _I wailed in panic, scared to reveal so much of myself to him. He paid no attention to my plea, and I was convinced he had found a way to kill me from the inside. He hated me. I started sobbing, totally irrationally, and let go of all defense. If this was what he wanted, then so be it. I could not stop him; I didn't have enough strength left.

The torture went on for a while, but as he realized he didn't have to put so much effort into it, his actions became less invasive, turning to feather-like touches eventually. But I had reached a point when I didn't care. I was curled up in the back of his brain, crying quietly to myself and waiting for the world to end.

Preoccupied, Matt was shifting back and forward through my memories, interested in the ones featuring Vicky, Ryan and himself. Since they weren't mine to begin with, they were blurred and faded like old pictures, and he didn't like it. I could hear his discontent clearly inside my head even when he wasn't speaking to me.

_Is this all you remember?_

_Yes._ I shuddered. Wasn't it enough?

_You don't remember correctly. _He forced his own memories inside my brain, insisting on the ones that felt more relevant to him. The avalanche of sensations nearly drowned me.

_Oh… but I thought…_

_What? That I was in love with her?_

_Uh…_

_We were good friends, but she was Ryan's girl._

_Ah._

Well, that wouldn't have stopped him from having feelings for her if that was the case.

_It wasn't. She wasn't my type._

I couldn't help feeling a little hurt by that statement. I hadn't known Vicky personally, but I knew her from her memories and she hadn't been that bad.

_Then… why…?_

I shoved at him the memory of the time when he had grabbed me and kissed me in the corridor. He kissed _her_, I corrected myself.

_Vicky is dead. You told me so, and now I have the confirmation after having looked through your memories._

_But then you didn't know that for sure, _I reminded him.

_Still… I wasn't kissing her._

It made no sense.

_Why? _I repeated weakly.

_I… it's hard to explain,_ he hesitated. _Maybe this will help…_ He lowered the shield and let me in.

At first I prodded tentatively, as delicately as I could, not really believing my luck. For a human to do that willingly it was unheard of. There were tons of memories neatly stacked there, and I wasn't sure where to start. I didn't even know what to look for.

He guided me. From the first time he'd seen me in town, then at the supermarket, and inside the caves. I saw myself moving around, straightening my back, tossing my hair over my shoulder, plugging weeds, climbing on the walls, helping in the kitchen, watching people and trying to read their body language, chatting with Wanda and laughing with Mel, attending to the rodent's needs with Jamie, keeping a healthy distance from Uncle Jeb's gun, eyeing Jared with respect like from one leader to another, tensing each time Matt passed by, smiling tentatively at him, dancing at the party… It didn't matter where I was or what I was doing, he was constantly watching me. Watching me. Watching me. WATCHING ME!

_Oh…_

When the realization hit, he threw at me the memory of the ceiling incident, with him trapped under the rocks, and it was suddenly dark and quiet and all I could feel was him all around me. No, it was me, 'cause I was seeing things from his perspective. My own memories came to life, and our heart started to beat faster as our blood raced.

_Enough!_ I panted overcame by too many emotions I could not control, and he stopped the assault right away.

_That's what it is, _he said quietly.

_You say… you… love… me?_

_I don't know. I don't have a word for it. Love is for humans._

_A dog loves his master, _I reasoned.

_Am I supposed to be the master or the dog?_ he joked.

I was tempted to roll my eyes so he did it for me.

_It's not the same, you know?_

_Yes, _I sighed, _I know._

_But it's still… something._

_It is._

We shook our head in mutual agreement. Now that we had full access to each other's mind things were much easier, and simple. There were no more secrets.

_I like this, _I told him. _It's supposed to be this way with all Hosts… but I've never had it, not on this planet._

_It's a first for me too, _he admitted. _It's not as bad as I feared._

_Because you're in control._

_Perhaps. _He meditated on the matter. _Can you still not move?_

I tried the usual. I discovered that I could control the heat beats to some degree and the activity of the internal organs, but on the outside nothing moved.

_That's it. _

_Well, we'll have to settle for this for now, _he said.

_Yes._

We lay down and crossed our arms underneath our head. Neither of us felt like sleeping. We kept browsing each other's memories at a slower pace, asking for explanation when we didn't understand something.

_Will you tell me about your big plan now? _he wondered after a while. It was the only part he hadn't touched. He could have done it without asking for permission, but he hadn't.

_Why? _It didn't seem that feasible at the moment, more like a utopia.

_I want to help. I trust you._

It was as good as a love declaration. Almost.

_OK._

And I did.


	22. Chapter 22

~ 22 ~

The engine's purr was a faded noise in the background. The voices were much louder. We stared out the window, and we ignored them both. We had had a serious discussion before leaving, and Jared had a plan. With my additions, we were happy with it. So we let the others do the talking, or arguing as the O'Shea brothers seemed to do restlessly in the back seat, and we focused on _the plan_.

_Are you sure?_ Matt went back to the question that irked him.

_Yes, _I replied patiently. _I've run isolated screenings in various areas on all continents and they all have the same tendency. Nothing hinted at that when we first tested the Humans' potential to become good Hosts for us and now… the connection between Souls and their Hosts has become so strong that 90% of the interviewed Souls are not considering moving on another planet or getting a new Host once their own Host reaches the termination point. Can you imagine that? A whole planet dying just because _your_ life expectancy is so damn short!_ I huffed frustrated.

Matt didn't know what to answer to that, he still found it hard to believe.

_Not an entire planet, _he said quietly. _Your species maybe, but there are still children being born._

_They are, but the birth rate is smaller than before the colonization. I guess Souls are more wary about having children than Humans are, although they can provide better for them._

_Still, if what you say is true, then the human species won't be extinct. It will survive and in, let's say, a century can start growing again._

_But with what price? Billions of Souls dead. And let's not forget about the Humans who are Hosts now but could still be rescued and have a life of their own. Is that fair?_

_I don't know. _Matt sighed and ran a hand over his face. _It sounds so…_

_I know. I couldn't believe it myself, that's why I requested all those tests. But it turned out to be true. You even have a name for the affliction, _I laughed bitterly, _Stockholm Syndrome. We simply cannot let go once we come in contact with you._

_Isn't that supposed to work the other way around? The prisoners to fall for the guards?_

_But we are the prisoners, _I argued. _We are stuck in your head 24 hours a day and see the world through your eyes. Your world._

There was a short pause before Matt commented, _You don't sound like a Soul anymore._

_I don't know what I am anymore. All I know is that I have to save my people… and I wouldn't mind saving some of yours in the process too._

_Are you… one of the affected ones?_

I hesitated as I gave it a serious thought and then admitted it in the end. _Part of me is._

_So if we lose Vicky…?_

_No, I won't commit suicide. I will get another Host one way or the other, _assuming I was ever going to get out of Matt's head and they wouldn't ship me off the planet…

_We won't._

_And I will continue with my Calling and save as many Souls as I can right until the end. _It sounded like a life sentence, which in a way it was.

_That's… tough. Nothing for you and everything for the others?_

_I…_ I wasn't sure I deserved more. I had had doubts for a long time, ever since that day on the rooftop.

_That wasn't your fault._ It had cost him a lot to say it, having gotten used to hating me for it lately, but he believed it, I could tell. It doesn't mean I wasn't surprised by his statement. _Ryan had stopped functioning properly since Vicky had fallen off the uneven bars and broken her neck and smashed her brain. It was only a matter of time until he did something stupid to follow her…_

For my own peace of mind, I wished I could believe that.

_You know, I've always been amazed by how strong their connection was… and a little envious, _he confessed. _Now I'm beginning to understand…_

I didn't know what to say to that. I knew I didn't deserve _that _much.

_Let's not argue on who deserves what, _Matt said. The ability to read each other's thoughts the moment they were formed was a little frustrating. _We all did some bad things in our life… we had no choice._

_I guess…_

_So your brilliant plan is to extract the Souls and free the Hosts, _he changed the subject.

_Yes, this is _my plan_. I've already limited the number of incoming ships to the minimum, and I issued an order for all living Souls to fill in a form declaring their intentions at the end of the current life term._

_How did they take it?_

_Well, they find it odd but they comply. We have good reasons for it. Some worlds are closed for being over populated, and although new ones are opened at times, we need to apply better logistics to the Soul migration._

_And they bought it._

_Yeah…_

He tapped his fingers on the headboard.

_All you need now is an extraction team._

_Right. The undecided Souls worry me the most, they should be our primary target. And I think we should focus on entire families, not to separate members if it's not really needed. Of course, all combined with the data available in their insertion files, so we can target Hosts with a real chance of getting back._

_Because you have access to all that._

_Yes, I do._

I was rather proud of my plan.

_Do you really think it can be done?_

_We have to try. Once it's begun, we can adjust the plan to make it better and maybe even involve the Souls at some point. But we have to start somewhere._

We nodded our head slowly in mutual agreement. It was funny how the body reacted pleasing us both, and not because I had any direct control over it, that hadn't changed, but because we thought so much alike. It was more comfortable this way, and I kinda liked it.

"Well, where is the hornet's nest?" Kyle started to whine as we were getting closer to our destination. In theory, they all knew by now where the apartment was located, but he was bored, I reckoned.

"Hornet? What happened to Queen Bee?" Ian asked.

"I haven't seen any honey yet!" Kyle laughed and clasped a hand on Matt's shoulder.

_I like honey, _I muttered to myself.

"We're only a few blocks away," Jared said.

Yes, we were in town, in broad daylight, heading to my personal command center. We parked in the usual spot, behind the building, and let the brothers wait for us in the car. There were some grumbles, but they understood it was better for someone to remain behind in case an unexpected event occurred.

We didn't run into anyone on our way to the front door. It was still morning and people were busy with their Callings. That suited us just fine. I told Matt how to bypass the security system at the door and we all let out a relieved breath once we got inside. OK, first step was done, on to the next one.

It took a little longer to connect to the system. Matt could see in my memories how and what to do and I could tell him too, but he still needed an extra second or two to react. We did it and we spend the first minute checking the news briefly. Not much could have happened in one day, but we feared a new tortured body might have been discovered during this time. It hadn't. That was a good sign. All the other bodies had been discovered soon after being dumped. It was as if they had been left there on purpose.

We entered the localization program and checked the signal from the device implanted in Vicky's leg. "It's there." We sighed and pointed at a place on the map. "They moved." There was a line connecting the last two known locations, and it was quite long. "They must have abandoned their base right after we left."

"Can you tell if she's still alive?" Jared wondered. Souls had brought plenty of advanced technologies after the colonization had started, so anything was possible.

"Barely… but according to the receiver there's still a heartbeat." We couldn't hold back a concerned sigh. "We don't have much time left-"

"Then we have to hurry," Jarred interrupted us. "We need maps of the area."

We displayed a satellite view on the main screen and used it to study the situation. Because of the general weather conditions, we couldn't get a clear view but we got an idea of what expected us there.

"How did they get there so fast?" Jared murmured, frowning at the map. "Even if they drove in straight line and kept it up to the top speed limit allowed, it's physically impossible to do it."

We thought about the straight line shown by the tracking system and we shook our head. "They didn't drive. They were airborne."

"What?" Jared stared at us like we were mad. "Driving there is a huge risk, but flying…"

"They got a chopper somehow, it's the only explanation. And the leader is a Soul… or he controls one…" We started to toy with that idea. It was possible, just look at Matt.

"Still, there's several of them and they aren't all Souls," Jared argued.

"It doesn't matter, one is enough." We remained firm on position.

_And it might be the only way it can be done, _I told Matt.

_I know._

Jared thought about it, but he couldn't come up with any other arguments. "OK, let's talk it over with the guys. This is more complicated than we thought."

"Get a map," we told him and moved to open a vault encased in the wall. "We'll need these to look legit." We retrieved four automatic guns armed with tranquilizers.

_You've got an entire arsenal in there._

_I thought you liked girls who can kick ass._

"Nice." Jared took a look at the guns and picked two up to help carry them.

We made our way outside, after locking back everything. Inside the car, the passengers were sweating bullets while waiting for us to return.

"What took you so long?" Kyle scolded us, but his face lit up considerably at the sight of the weapons.

"We bring gifts." Jared spread them around so each of us had one.

"Any news on the girl?" Ian asked.

"Yes, we know where she is and how to get her," we told him.

"This is where we're going." Jared shoved the map over the backrest of the driver's seat he was occupying.

"A swamp?" Kyle whined. "Man, I hate bugs!"

Ian smirked. "You'll live."

"But we have to make a stop first," said Matt.


	23. Chapter 23

~ 23 ~

"This is crazy. We're all gonna get killed," Kyle grumbled, looking at the solid walls that surrounded the facility. "Or worse."

"Just keep quiet and follow my lead. We'll be fine," Matt said.

_Will we?_

_Absolutely,_ I assured him.

It helped that now my thoughts seemed to travel almost instantly to him, and there was no delay before he could react accordingly. I hoped my confidence translated well too.

We passed by the gates and entered the large building, made of gray bricks that gave it a gloomy look. A former military base, it had been transformed into the headquarters for our Host containing operation in the area. There were all necessities available and, I didn't expect to run into any problems that might prevent us from using them.

"Hello," we approached the first Soul we ran into, "we're looking for Seeker Merry Weather. Do you know where we can find him?"

"His office is on the second floor," said the tall, skinny man, "but I don't know if he's there. He's a very busy man, and he can't sit still at all. He can be anywhere inside the base."

"Thank you," I told him and I would have smiled too, but Matt refused.

_I'm not a girl._

"We'll find him." We nodded at our companions to follow us across the hallway and up the stairs. We could see their tension in the way they held their backs and in their walk. We hoped they could handle the pressure and none of them would go trigger-happy when it wasn't needed.

Second floor was a long way to go in the given circumstances, and when we got there we found the office empty.

"Great," Kyle muttered. "Do you at least know how he looks like?"

"Of course I know how he looks like," we replied. "I have been here before."

Jared and Ian gave us an odd look. Kyle was too slow to realize what we had said. But there was nothing wrong with that, Matt had simply delivered my own words.

"You sound just like her," Ian murmured.

"I have to. People around here know me. Let's go ask someone else."

Three sets of questions later, during which we had been sent to four different departments, we figured out that the person we were looking for had to be in the back yard where the warehouses were, because there was no other place left to search for him.

Indeed, he was there, inspecting a transport that had just arrived.

"Merry Weather!" we called out once there were only a few steps separating us.

"Yes?" This one turned around, big hands resting on his hips.

"Hi, I've been looking everywhere for you." He seemed a little puzzled so we added, "I'm Stardust."

"Well, well… you've grown up a bit," he joked, but he also looked concerned. "What happened?"

"A freak accident…" We shrugged our shoulders. "Good thing this Host was available." We made a big show out of looking at our hand and flexing our fingers.

"I'm glad you've made it… but that was expected." Merry Weather grinned. We had known each other for a while, having worked together, and it was no secret to him what I was capable of. "What brings you here now?"

"We've got a big one," we told him. "My friends and I," we gestured towards the men, standing at safe distance, "we were on to something and we finally figured it out. It's time to get some action."

"Ah, I miss those times." He sighed. While still in a good shape, except for his belly that was starting to get round, he wasn't that young anymore and therefore he didn't participate in high risk operations. "What do you need?"

"Transportation… and fast."

Merry Weather eyed our little group, estimating what kind of transportation he could offer. "All the helicopters are away on mission, but I can call one back."

"No," we shook our head, "I need something faster and for a longer ride. No time for refuel on the way."

"Hmm," he rubbed the back of his head pensively, "we only have two army helicopters stationed here. One's broken and the other was requested earlier today. It won't make it back in time if you're in a hurry."

"Who took it?"

"Blue Flames. It was rather unexpected…"

"I've heard about him, but I've never met him. He's a brave Soul." He had done some pretty cool things on the Fire Eaters planet, it's why he had kept the name, but that had happened before my time there. Could it be him the one we were looking for? It was hard to believe. "When did he leave?"

"Six hours ago."

_At dawn, _we calculated. The man had balls, walking in like that and taking off with what he needed.

"Did he leave a flight plan?"

"I don't think he did…" He narrowed his eyes with the beginning of suspicion.

"Of course not." We nodded like we knew exactly why he had done that, and in a way we did. "Was he well prepared? Weapons? Men?"

"He requested extra weapons for his men. They were a little over a dozen people, and they all looked like they had been through hell."

Not hell, us. "Did the big guy with red hair make it? He looked rather bad last time I saw him." It was one way to find out if it was the same guy.

"Yes, he was in a bad shape, but he was walking."

_It's him. _We shuddered and lost our train of thoughts for a moment.

"Good, good…" it was all we managed to say.

"Boss, we better hurry," Jared saved us, "they could use our help."

"Right." We snapped out of it. "We'll take the jet." We decided.

"Whatever you say, Stardust." Merry Weather shrugged. "Do you have a place to land? I overheard them talking about that when they were leaving."

"We'll find one," we said with determination. "Better yet, find us a landing spot in Florida and prepare a local helicopter to pick us up to take us to the destination."

"OK. It will take half an hour to have it ready." Someone groaned, making him watch them curiously. "Are they alright?" he asked, proving he was a Seeker at heart and the men's awkwardness hadn't passed unnoticed.

"They're fine. They've been undercover for too long," we said without missing a beat.

"Oh… you're safe here, boys." He gave a friendly smile and turned to me. "Take them to the cafeteria. Chef Funny Wheelers is making turkey."

"Good idea, we'll wait there."

"Anything else you need?"

"Just the usual. Guns. Lots of guns." We smirked a little.

"Guns it will be. Men?"

"Hmm," we looked at our small team, "yeah, four, no, six."

"I'll have everything ready for you, Stardust."

"Thanks, Merry Weather. We'll be in the cafeteria."

He nodded and walked off.

_He likes you._

_I'm a Soul. You'll be surprised how many people like me._

We turned around and started walking in the opposite direction, heading for the cafeteria. Reluctant footsteps followed us. It was too late for breakfast and too early for lunch so the place was nearly empty. Only a few Souls were gathered around a large table and we occupied a small one far enough for them not to be able to eavesdrop on our conversation.

A Food Server showed up right away loaded with plates and drinks. Merry Weather must have called the kitchen to put in our orders, knowing we didn't have much time.

_He _really_ likes you._

_Shut up._

_Or he fears you._

_Souls aren't afraid of each other._

Matt showed me the image of the Soul from the park, the one we were hunting now. I sighed.

"Is there anything else I can bring you?" we were asked.

"No, thank you," we replied.

_You're always so polite._

_You should try it too._

Kyle pressed a hand over his mouth and nose, and he grumbled from behind it, "I think I'm going to be sick."

"Stop being such a drama queen." Ian kicked his brother underneath the table, making him jump. "Since when are you saying no to food?"

"Act normal," Jared warned them in a low tone of voice. "And eat. We don't know when we'll get the chance to eat again."

_And if we die at least we'll die with a full stomach, _I sneered.

_We're not going to die_.

But how could he know that? There were no guarantees. If it were just for my Host I would have been tempted to call off the mission, but Blue Flames had to be stopped.

_And we need to get Vicky back, _Matt reminded me and threw at me the memory of out last kiss to be more convincing. The temperature of our skin went up a degree or two.

_Right, _I mumbled.

We ate in silence, focusing on our food, as if fearing that any other sign of human accepted behavior might ruin our cover. Four adult men could have a big appetite, but they could also eat very fast, especially when the situation asked for it.

"Now I'm really going to be sick," Kyle complained after he finished his second plate.

We all rolled our eyes and simply ignored him. Five more minutes passed while we nursed our drinks, trying to make them last longer, and then we just couldn't wait any longer.

"We should check on the preparations," we said and got up to everyone's relief.

We nodded at the Souls left behind and, careful not to look to be more in a hurry than we were supposed to be, we found our way back outside. The sun and the wind felt terribly good on our face. Freedom was just around the corner. We could run. But that was just a stranded thought that we easily discarded. I didn't even know if it was his or mine.

"Almost done," Merry Weather announced. We had found him in the back yard, giving orders not far from where we had left him.

A jeep pulled up in front of us.

"This will take you to the jet. Everything is loaded inside."

"Thanks." We shook hands.

"Go get them, Stardust!"

_Why Stardust?_ Matt's question came when we were already up in the air, after we had inspected the cargo, met the new members of our team and informed them about our mission, or at least given them enough detail for them to make themselves useful.

_Sorry?_

_Why did you change your name? Wasn't it Starlight?_

_It was… before coming here. I changed it after that day on the rooftop. It felt… more appropriate somehow._


	24. Chapter 24

~ 24 ~

The noise made by the chopper hurt my eardrums in spite of the protective gear covering my ears. The jet had left us in the airport closest to our target, where a chopper was waiting for us. In less than two hours we were ankle deep in mud and on our way to reach our goal. The signal picked by the tracking device was weaker, but we were getting closer too. Only five more miles left to cross through the deep Florida woods. It was hot, the sunlight barely made it through the foliage, and the moist air made our clothes cling to our backs. Let's not even mention the bugs that we could mostly hear and feel rather than see.

With the six Seekers accompanying us, we didn't dare to talk much. I did some since I had to explain the situation to them. They were there to help and not to get themselves killed so there were some facts mandatory for them to know. The whole story about the torturer/serial killer was revealed to them along with the suspicion that at least one Soul could be involved. Merry Weather had chosen the backup team well and they didn't comment much, but it left us all in a gloomy mood. Soon, there was going to be a fight and chances were some people would die. There was nothing to be happy about that.

_What's going to happen after we find her? _Matt asked, distracting my thoughts.

_What do you mean?_

_I reckon we retrieve Vicky's body, catch the bad guys if we can, and then what?_

_We heal her and then put me back… unless you have a better idea?_

_Starry, my feet are wet so I really don't appreciate your sarcasm. I meant _after_ that._

_Oh…well… the prisoners will have to be interrogated._

_You really like to finish what you started, don't you?_

_Usually, yes. But it shouldn't take long. And if I get the confirmation that this is the end of it, then someone else can take over and close the case, _I reasoned.

_And what are _you _going to do?_

_Focus on my other plan, of course. _

_Saving the world? Really?_

_Yes, and you are going to help. This was the plan from the start._

He hesitated.

_What if we come to the conclusion that it's too risky for us?_

_With me protecting you? _I snorted like it was a good joke.

_Someone is being vain…_

_I am being practical. Do you like living inside the caves?_

_I don't live there. I came from a different community, remember?_

_Right. But do you think that's where Uncle Jeb should spend his old age or Jamie his childhood?_

_There isn't much we can do about that._

_What if there is?_

_How?_

_Imagine a small town and no Seekers in the area. It could be easily arranged. _

_You mean take over like you did to us?_

_Something like that._

_Won't they notice if Souls start disappearing?_

_Not if they're told there are no more Hosts running wild._

_Will they buy that?_

_Oh, yeah, _I said feeling pretty confident. He thought I was smug.

_But still, they will notice if people's behavior changes overnight._

_It won't happen overnight. The Hosts will more likely need time to wake up, just like Doc does in the hospital. No, we will extract entire families and move them somewhere else. Only that they will get there without the Souls, who will be shipped safely off the orbit by then._

_You have an answer for everything._

_That's why I'm the top Seeker._

The Seeker who walked ahead froze and signaled for us to stop advancing any further. Then he pointed at his ear. He'd heard something. We nodded our head and watched him disappear behind the trees to figure out what was going on. The waiting was full of tension, and I half feared someone might fire their weapons from too much excitement. We looked around and saw the same concern written on everyone's faces. Had we gotten too close to the nest already? The tracking system didn't think so, but the humidity in the air could have damaged it somehow.

_Matt, weren't we taller than Jared?_ I asked confused.

_What? Yes…_ We looked at Jared, then at the others. Everyone seemed to get taller by the second. _What the…?_

_We're sinking!_

_Shit!_

By now the others had finally noticed what was going on. Instead of helping, they hurried to step back and formed a clear circle around us so they could make sure they sat on solid ground.

"Don't move," Jared hissed at us.

The mud level was advancing fast. We could already feel it around our knees and it was growing as we went in deeper. We didn't like it, not at all.

_They're gonna let us drown, _I whined in panic. Our fingers clenched. The mud was disgusting to the touch.

Matt struggled not too move, though we both wanted to.

"Clear." Our scout came back rushing. "There was a patrol, but I took him out," he reported. "We don't have much time until they discover he's missing."

His reasoning was correct, but we had other more stringent issue to deal with, like figuring out how not to become soil fertilizer for example. Two of the Seekers came towards us tentatively, trying to reach us, and they also started to sink.

"Get them out," we ordered. Inside we were frantically looking for a solution. _We need to hold onto something. _But we had no rope, and the trees were either too big or their branches were too short or too thin.

"Hold me," Kyle told Ian and, laying down on the ground, he slowly started to crawl forward. Probably not the wisest idea since he was the heaviest of them all, but he did manage to get closer than anyone else. Meantime the mud had encased our chest, sucking us in.

"Try to grab my hand." He outstretched an arm in our direction. He was still far, and while we tried to lean towards him the best we could, we were unable to reach him.

"Damn!" Kyle's voice echoed our thoughts. "Hold on, I'll come closer." He glanced back to make sure Ian was doing his job, but this one was at his turn supported by a pair of Seekers. Kyle rolled his eyes, making a grimace at their cooperation, and he stretched some more, pulling Ian after him in the process. The ground was giving in under the pressure, but nothing could beat Kyle and his stubbornness.

Our fingers were close to touching his, when we had to pull back. Not because we wanted to, but because we still cared for our hand enough not to want to lose it. Yes, we were in need of a shower, badly, but not of a manicure. The bullet rain passed over our head until far back, and we heard a chocked moan sign that someone had been hit.

The first to react was Jared. He returned fire in cold blood, sending the source to the ground in a bloodied heap. The Seekers used the tranquilizers, but my caveman friends preferred old fashion weapons that drew potentially deadly holes in human bodies. We held our breath, and I could bet we weren't the only ones doing it, but no other enemy showed up.

"Now!" ordered Jared, his eyes glued to where the intruder had come from, and Kyle complied. With another effort, this one managed to grab our hand. A hair strand would have been enough.

The crawl back to safe ground was long and tedious, and far from being pleasant, but we made it. "Thanks," we gasped, allowing ourselves a moment to catch our breath.

"Don't mention it," came the gruff reply.

We shook our head and moved our attention to the injured man. "How is he?" we asked the Seeker attending to him.

"He'll make it, but he will be of no use for a while."

"Good. Stay with him and keep an eye on the other guy too." We got up to our feet and briefly checked if we were alright. Everything seemed to be in working order.

_This was close,_ Matt commented.

_Yes. Do you think they heard the shootings?_

_I don't know. We're not far so we should be prepared for anything._

It was a good advice.

"Midnight Symphony, go ahead and check the way. We'll be right behind you," we told our scout.

Two men left behind, we continued with our rescue mission. The water level was rising, and the forest was clearing up as the trees became more rare. We stopped behind the cover of the last line of trees, and we looked forward, estimating the situation. A wide opening lay in front of us. There was a narrow path leading to the cottage surrounded by the water, but there was also a boat tied to the entrance. A riffle could be seen at one of the windows, someone was staying on guard. That meant we couldn't just walk over there. We couldn't row as we had no boat, and we couldn't swim because… well, maybe we could, but we were still going to be seen if we did.

"We split and we go around through the thicket. We'll meet in the back of the house, the closest we can get." We decided.

The split was done naturally, without asking. The Seekers started to the right, while Jared, Ian, Kyle and us went to the left. There were no more trees, and the thicket wasn't tall enough for us to walk through it so we mostly had to crawl. It took us about twenty minutes to get to the other side. We spotted another guard on the way.

What we hadn't been able to see from the opposite side was that this was the actual front of the house. Facing the main entrance, there was an opening in the thicket wide enough for a boat to pass through it. That explained the boat, though the closest exit from the swamp in that direction was at least two hours away if they rowed like for a race. It didn't help us much as fifty meters still separated us from our objective, and because of the two guards taken down earlier we couldn't wait until nightfall to cross them.

"Now what?" Kyle grumbled, looking sideways at the muddy water.

We all exchanged a glance. The answer was obvious.

"Anyone up for some diving?" Jared smirked.

We sighed. Only God knew what disease we might catch from submerging in that water.

_You really suffer from hypochondria._

_That's because you're the weakest specie I've ever met. Anything can kill you. It's a miracle you survived this long,_ I replied.

"We should let the Seekers go first and clean the place for us," Kyle muttered.

"No, they might get tricked by Blue Flames and die for nothing," we protested and looked at Jared for support.

This one agreed with a nod. You could tell the story hundreds of time, but they would never fully understand it unless they lived it.

"We go. We have some accounts to settle," he said.

While we hadn't been granted with any open wound, we had enough deep tissue bruises not to forget about that encounter for a long time. And we had both seen what they had done to that girl. Soul. Both. We couldn't forget that.

"Then we should go around and try coming in through the channel," Ian suggested.

We signaled to the other part of our team to stand still and cover us, and we did just that. Before going into the water, we found some reeds with empty stems and we cut them and used them as tubes for air. This way swimming below the surface of the water was not a problem, except for the fact that we couldn't quite see where we were going. Once we established a direction we could only hope we weren't going to hit our heads into the pillars supporting the building. We didn't, mostly because the light changed once we entered the shadow left by the cottage.


	25. Chapter 25

~ 25 ~

As quietly as we could, we emerged underneath the deck and drew in a deep breath of air. Kyle was already there, and Ian and Jared soon joined us too. We listened intently since we couldn't see above. It was quiet; we only heard the natural sounds of the swamp and faint murmur of the water. If someone was at the window or door we couldn't tell. But we could glance out through the holes in the deck and check the portion of the thicket where the Seekers were waiting. Since we knew where to look, we thought we saw one of them hidden by the vegetation.

After another thirty seconds he gave us the signal to go ahead. No one was watching.

"We'll go first," Kyle volunteered without asking for his brother's opinion.

"We go," Ian repeated with a sigh as if not entirely understanding why they had to take that risk.

Nodding, we watched them climb up onto the deck. The old fire weapons had been discarded before the swimming trip and now we all used traditional waterproof Seeker gear. There were two windows above and a smaller one as part of the door. We heard them fire two paralyzing gas grenades through the windows, and we held our breath for ten seconds in case the gas got out through the small holes made in the glass.

"Clear."

At their announcement, we climbed up on the deck and pressed our back against the wooden wall. It didn't look that thick, someone could fire through it and hit us, the thought crossed our mind, but hopefully anyone on the other side of the wall was already passed out.

"We counted two thuds," Ian whispered.

Jared tried the door handle. It turned out the door wasn't locked so he carefully pushed it open. Indeed, two bodies were lying on the floor. We kicked away all the weapons we found, although the effect of the paralyzing gas was meant to last for a whole hour.

The entrance room was small, mainly a place to change mud covered boots for something more comfortable. This wasn't a simple cottage forgotten in the swamp. The building had two stories and a rather big attic, and back in its good old days it had been a private retreat for fishermen. By the look of things, we reckoned it had been abandoned for several years; no wonder Blue Flames used it for hiding. How he had found it had no importance at this point.

Gesturing silently, we advanced into the house. Merry Weather had said a dozen of people had flown from the base. It meant we still had at least two thirds to deal with. Other people could have joined them since then or already be there.

One door was opened, then another. A small bathroom and a closet. So far so good. At least three guards were watching the windows so we had to make it to them preferably before they became aware of our intrusion. It would have been too good to be true. The next door we opened led to a large living room, in which five men were sitting around a table, playing cards.

Two of them were downed the same instant thanks to Jared and Ian. They were the ones with the guns at hands, so it wasn't just luck that they had been chosen as primary target. The others didn't stand still and wait their turn though. They all hurried to reach for their own guns or find some sort of weapon. Although we were quick in not letting them do that, we were clearly in disadvantage. These were all mercenaries, perhaps former soldiers even, which I couldn't say about my own team. I wished the Seekers had accompanied us too. By the time we were done with them, Ian was sporting an injured shoulder and we had made enough of a racket to wake up the dead.

_Wow, that was cool,_ Matt said, referring to the way we had combined our combat experience in restraining one of the attackers. It had taken us 2.5 seconds. My personal record was 2.3.

_I can teach you some of that, _I said like I had offered before. _But it works better with two bodies to demonstrate. It will be my pleasure. _If I could, I would have smirked. It would be payback for the treatment he had given me during the first days in the caves.

_You're a small, revengeful thing._

_Yes… watch out!_

Someone was shooting from the corridor so we ran for cover. Kyle was closer, and he screamed, "Fire in the hole!" before launching another grenade. We sucked in a breath. The thud let us know the gas had done its job. While still holding our breath, we rushed out of the room to take advantage of the offered break.

A row of small bedrooms turned out to be empty until the last one just around the corner. There were three bodies laid across the bed. Except for one, they were tied up and showed various degrees of abuse. The one who didn't open her eyes was Vicky. We checked her pulse and it was very weak, but at least she was still alive. We gave all victims Sleep and Heal, while the O'Shea brothers were guarding the corridor. Jared had gone ahead.

"Someone should stay here and make sure they're not used as hostages again," we said.

"I'm not babysitting them!" Kyle argued.

Ian was more reasonable. "I'll stay."

The next room made our stomachs turn with all the blood covering it, but there was no one in it.

The ground floor seemed to be clear, especially after another shot hurt our ears and Kyle held up his thumb seeing Jared still standing at the bottom of the staircase and a body a few steps from him. It wasn't Blue Flames, and I would have been surprised if it were him. It was time to go upstairs and finish the job. Chances were he might not even be there.

We didn't waste any time and went ahead with it. The rooms were bigger and better equipped. Most parts of them looked like they weren't even used, except for the small saloon upstairs. No weapons in sight, but there were maps and plans and it looks pretty much like a campaign office would. Someone was even sitting behind the desk, waiting for us. It was the man we had met in the park.

"I knew you would come for her… Stardust." The man actually smiled.

"Blue Flames?" we asked tentatively.

He nodded, looking amused. "Souls often call me that."

"You're not Blue Flames," we stated and took a step forward. "He would never hurt his own kind."

"And where's the fun in that?" He smirked.

"There's no fun in torturing people," we retorted.

"That's… debatable."

"You're sick."

"By whose definition?"

"How about by everyone's definition?"

"Well, in that case you are sick too. You couldn't handle one little kill… and it wasn't even your doing." He shook his head with fake compassion.

"She's not sick." Oddly enough, Matt felt the need to defend me, when I couldn't care less what that monster thought about me.

"She?" The man narrowed his eyes. "Since when are we using the third person to talk about ourselves?"

He seemed to be more worried about this little detail than his entire situation. His eyes flicked suspiciously towards the door where Jared was standing. Kyle was caught in yet another brawl on the corridor. He was happy, but Jodi was going to have our skin on a stick when we returned home. Home?

"Since we took over a Soul," Matt replied. "Like you did," we both added and took another step forward.

"Don't come any closer!" he warned, getting up.

"Or what?" we purred menacingly. We kinda enjoyed the power game.

"Or I'll turn his brain to mush? What do I have to lose?"

"_Your_ brain for example. Blue Flames might be in there, but he's not the one holding the rains, uh-uh." We shook our head. "And, believe it or not, _we_ are going to save him."

The man's shoulders twitched. He was starting to worry, we recognized that look.

"Wait, wait! I have something to give you in return. Something that you want…"

_Does he?_ Matt wondered.

_I can't think of anything… unless… he's stalling. Yes, this has to be it!_

In a second we were next to him, with a hand grabbing him by the throat. We were taller, stronger, and more determined. He had no chance against us.

"Don't worry, we'll take good care of you… separately," we made them a solemn promise, and we started to squeeze. Not to kill him, just enough to make the Host lose consciousness, which he did. Victory!

"You're scaring me."

We turned around to grin at Jared, but to our surprise he exclaimed, "Jesus, you're bleeding!"

We looked down and saw the wound gaping open in our side. The all too familiar pain hit, and we started shaking.

_That bastard! He stabbed us, _I gasped in shock. I hadn't seen the blade coming; I should have known he had one. Was I getting soft? _Oh, no… _The shock was overcome by the pain. I didn't want Matt to experience that ordeal.

_Stop it! What the hell are you doing? Stop it right now! _Matt ordered me.

_Sorry, I panicked… and an antenna snapped, _I apologized. _Oops. There goes another one._

_Stop it! We're fine, we're not going to die… focus, God dammit!_

_Sorryyy, _I whimpered. _I'll replace them right back._

_No! Don't do that, that hurts even worse… Just keep calm, OK?_

_OK, _I sighed, but I was feeling less tensed already, and I started to relax.

The next moment everyone jumped hearing the engine of a motor boat approaching.

"He was waiting for help!"

We pressed a hand against our side to stop the bleeding, and we wanted to go down stairs or at least to a window facing the right way, but we hadn't even made it to the door yet when the shootings began. We recognized two kind of shots. The Seekers weren't wasting time either.

It all ended quickly. None of the attackers got to set foot on the deck on their own. They were fished out of the water later on so they wouldn't drown, and they were left in a pile in the hallway. Soon we were downstairs in the living room, congratulating ourselves for the success of our mission. Half of us hadn't dared to hope for it, while the other half had no idea what they were getting themselves into.

"Are you alright?" The youngest of the Seekers came to check on us. "I can help, I know a little about healing," he offered.

"Thank you. In a second, I need to arrange some things first," I told him and went to pull Jared to the side. "Grab one of those cryotanks from the kitchen and put Blue Flames in it. We'll take him with us." Then we turned to Kyle. "Tell Ian to prepare Vicky for the trip. There's something wrong with her leg," I whispered, giving him a pointed look. The tracking device had to be removed.

"Now," we said to the others, "two of you, who are not injured, should take the boat and bring those left in the forest. They'll be safer here, and this location is easier to protect if anything happens before the helicopter comes to get us. Once the boat returns, half of us we'll leave to join forces with the closer station and continue with the investigation. The rest will wait here to be picked up."

No one contested our orders. Two Seekers jumped to comply with them, and we sank in a chair to gather our strength. The walls were starting to spin a little. Everyone else was in position, ready to defend the cottage if a threat arrived.

"We're ready to go." Jared showed up with the cryotank underneath his arm.

"We're ready too," Ian announced. He was wiping his hands on a cloth, leaving behind traces of blood.

We winced. The young Seeker was dabbing at our side, trying to treat us. We weren't so sure he succeeded.

_Stitches would be better._

_That's barbarian, _I protested.

"We can take the other boat? We can row." Kyle suggested eager to leave.

So were we, but we had to stay practical. "No, we'll wait for the motor boat. It's faster."

Kyle grumbled, but he didn't dare to protest too loud. The following thirty-five minutes felt like hours. The gassed people were beginning to stir. The good part was that No Pain had kicked in and Seal had worked, so we weren't in pain and we weren't bleeding anymore.

The injured people were brought in, and they were recovering too. That meant two more added to their defense power. They were fine, we could leave.

We checked the fuel and, estimating that we had enough, we climbed into the boat and started our journey, giving my fellow Seekers firm instructions to wait for the chopper. It would be easy for them to be found since Ian had left the tracking device under the bed.

The sun was preparing to set when he asked, "Everything alright, Starry?"

They were all staring at us, even Jared who was steering the boat had turned his head to look at us.

"She's fine," Matt answered for me.

_You didn't ask._

_I didn't have to. I know it already._

We smiled contently and glanced at Vicky's body laid in the back. It was going to be fine.

I woke up startled by an unsettling dream. It was dark and quiet. The air was hot and heavy, making it hard to breathe. I looked around for comfort, but there was no one else inside my head beside me. I whimpered and stirred confused. I didn't want to be alone. I felt a set of lips press on mine, and I surrendered with a sigh to the arms wrapping around me. I was home.

THE END

**Author's note: Thank you everyone for following along. If you got this far please drop a note to say so. It will make my day. :)**


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